Did You Know That Boxing Has Different Weight Categories?
There are various boxing weight categories. Boxing features 17 weight classes, ranging from the little 105 pounds (47.6 kilograms) dynamos to the heavyweight giants weighing 200 or 300 pounds (90.7 or 136.1 kilograms).
The weight classes are currently 17 from the initial eight. They made this change to reduce the number of mismatches that occur between opponents of different sizes.
How Many Boxing Weight Classes are There?
Boxing features 17 weight classes, each of which facilitates the staging of competitions that are fair for the various boxers who compete in the sport.
The combat class begins at 105 pounds (47.6 kilograms)and continues to the heavyweight division, which can weigh more than 200 pounds (90.7 kilograms). Fighters of varying heights and weights can participate thanks to the several weight categories.
What is the Lightest Weight Class in Boxing?
Boxing bouts at the professional level take place at a minimum weight of 105 pounds, equivalent to 47.6 kilograms. This category is the mini flyweight division by the IBF and the WBO. The WBC names it the Strawweight division, whereas the WBA refers to it as the minimum weight division.
Unpacking the Different Boxing Weight Categories
Strawweight (Minimum Weight)
Weight limit: 105 pounds (47.6 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Historians almost unanimously agree that Ricardo Lopez of Mexico was the greatest minimum-weight fighter in history. His boxing career ended with a perfect record of 51-0-1, which includes a decade-long reign as champion and 22 successful title defenses against tough competition.
Ivan Calderon, the slick-moving leader of Cuba, and Chana Porpaoin, the leader of Thailand, are two more prominent figures.
Top fighters today: Boxer-turned-Muay Thai fighter Knockout CP is currently one of the top fighters in the world. It’s safe to say that Freshmart is the best strawweight marauder on the globe right now and has the best boxing nickname.
Freshmart the Freshman (his name is Thammanoon Niyomtrong). In a most popular division beyond the borders of the United States, Wanheng Menayothin and Byron Rojas are also major first-place competitors.
Junior Flyweight (Juvenile)
Weight limit: 108 pounds (48.9 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Jung-Koo Chang was a hard-hitting South Korean dynamo who ruled the 1980s with an iron fist. Michael Carbajal’s superb technical skill and thunderous power punching against Chiquita Gonzalez in 1993. Both are all-time greats in boxing.
Top fighters today: Unbeaten Japanese boxers Ken Shiro and Kosei Tanaka are on the verge of becoming their names in their native country. At the same time, Pedro Guevara of Mexico remains an effective alternative in a division most typically linked with fighters from outside the United States.
Flyweight
Weight limit: 112 pounds (50.8 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Jimmy Wilde of Great Britain is one of the sport’s most accomplished competitors. At the time of his retirement in 1923, he was one of the sport’s most revered boxers, and he still owns the record for the longest victory streak in boxing, which stands at 103.
In stark contrast to this was Mexico’s Pancho Villa, who passed away at 23 but established himself as one of the most accomplished fighters in just three years of professional competition. His career spanned only nine years.
Top fighters today: Today, even though many of the top stars in the flyweight division have been increasing in weight in the past year or two, Japanese fighters Kazuto Ioka and Daigo Higa, along with Filipino bottle rocket Donnie Nietes, still provide plenty of action-packed excitement for fans of the flyweight division.
Junior Bantamweight
Weight limit: 115 pounds (52.2 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: During the 1980s, the junior bantamweight division was rife with exciting matches, the best of which came from Thailand.
The powerfully muscled Khaosai Galaxy successfully defended his championship 19 times during that decade, and Gilberto Roman roved the division in a complementing fashion, helping to make the era one of the best in the history of the 115-pound (52.2 kilograms) weight class.
Top fighters today: The competition at junior bantamweight is just as impressive as it was in the past.
Roman Gonzalez, a longtime kingpin of the little fighter division, was the best fighter in the division by Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, followed by the rugged Juan Francisco Estrada and “Little Monster” Naoya Inoue to round out a field of four fighters who are on par with any other in the sport at the moment.
Bantamweight
Weight limit: 118 pounds (53.5 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Eder Jofre, a Brazilian bantamweight who fought approximately 80 times and only lost twice, is typically the best fighter at 118 pounds (53.5 kilograms). He suffered only two defeats in his career. Because of his incredible power, he could rack up fifty knockouts during his professional career.
In the meantime, George Dixon was the greatest boxer of the 19th century by his contemporaries. Dixon was the first African-American athlete ever to win a world championship in the sport.
Top fighters today: Up-and-coming stars Ryan Burnett and Luis Nery are working hard to secure a piece of the title pie for themselves, all while preparing for the imminent invasion of Rungvisai, Inoue, and Estrada, who will make their jobs tougher than they’ve ever been.
Juan Carlos Payano and Rau’shee Warren, both of whom have previously held the title, remain formidable competitors in their respective divisions.
Junior Featherweight (Super Bantamweight)
Weight limit: 122 pounds (55.3 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: During the golden age of the 122 pounds (55.3 kilograms) weight class, which spanned the late 1990s and early 2000s, Mexican rivals Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales established themselves as two of the sport’s top contenders.
Nevertheless, Wilfredo Gomez, a heavy-handed, ultra-competitive, technically brilliant boxer who ruled the roost twenty years earlier, was most likely the best junior featherweight ever. Gomez was a legend in his day.
Top fighters today: The junior featherweight weight class has been under the domination of the unbeaten Cuban sensation Guillermo Rigondeaux, the lineal champion for the past three years. Everyone else has been on the outside looking in.
The Wily Southpaw is quick, powerful, and extremely skilled. His ability to easily defeat his opponents discourages other notable fighters from seeking to take his authority in the ring. Both Jessie Magdaleno and Rey Vargas are relatively new names, but they have the potential to turn the tide shortly.
Featherweight
Weight limit: 126 pounds (57.2 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Willie Pep is the best featherweight of all time and the greatest defensive boxer in history. He held the record longest in the division. Even against Sandy Saddler, his fancy footwork and unbelievable dodging skills made him a nightmare for offensive-minded opponents.
Top fighters today: Leo Santa Cruz and Carl Frampton, who have been in a two-fight series, lead a stacked featherweight landscape full of vicious characters. These two fighters have split against each other.
The extraordinary speed of Gary Russell Jr., a great physical specimen, and the well-traveled Abner Mares help this division with many exciting stylistic matches that fans can enjoy over the next few years.
Junior Lightweight Weight Class (Super Featherweight)
Weight limit: 130 pounds (58.9 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Floyd Mayweather Jr. was the most recent fighter to hold the title of historically excellent junior lightweight. When he weighed 130 pounds (58.9 kilograms), he was at his most combative, and his natural athletic ability against opponents of similar size was just too much for them to handle.
However, because other great fighters such as Alexis Arguello, Julio Cesar Chavez, and Flash Elorde were so outstanding at what they did, it isn’t easy to single out a competitor as being significantly superior to the others.
Top fighters today: Current Titleholders Most boxing analysts agree that Vasyl Lomachenko is among the best in his weight class. The perfectly balanced southpaw technician combines excellent timing and expert technique to overwhelm most of the opponents he has faced this far.
He is a Southpaw. Because of his decisive victory against Loma in 2014, the seasoned veteran Orlando Salido, a vicious combination puncher, continues to loom large as a threat to Lomachenko.
Lightweight
Weight limit: 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: The lightweight division has never seen a fighter of Roberto Duran’s caliber come out of Panama. He was untouchable. At 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms), he possessed the ideal combination of viciousness and talent and was extremely difficult to defeat.
Benny Leonard, a boxing maestro of the highest order, and Joe Gans, a pioneering technical savant, exemplify historically fantastic lightweights.
Top fighters today: Mikey Garcia reaffirmed his hold on the lightweight mantle after a brief interruption caused by promotional problems. Garcia has been demonstrating precise technical proficiency and artistic movement.
This puts Garcia among the top fighters in the world today. In the meantime, the athletically gifted Jorge Linares is riding a wave of resurgent excellence to stake his claim to being one of the top lightweights in the world at this time. Linares is making his claim while riding a wave of resurgent excellence.
Junior Welterweight (Super Lightweight)
Weight limit: 140 pounds (63.5 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Aaron Pryor was a ferocious boxer-puncher who ran roughshod over the junior welterweight boxing competition in the early 1980s. He was on our list of the top historical fighters. Because he was so talented and feared, he could not secure fights against other greats of the same weight class during that era, such as Sugar Ray Leonard.
Julio Cesar Chavez, regarded as one of the greatest junior lightweights, was an equally deadly opponent when he competed in the junior welterweight division.
Top fighters today: Terence Crawford, the current Lineal Champion, is the epitome of a well-oiled fighting machine. He can fight just as dangerously from the orthodox posture as he does from the southpaw stance, and he has a propensity for delivering concussive results.
Mikey Garcia and Sergey Lipinets are two more notable competitors in the junior welterweight division.
Welterweight
Weight limit: 147 pounds (66.7 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Henry Armstrong, Sugar Ray Robinson, and Sugar Ray Leonard are just a few of the names that come to mind when thinking of some of the greatest welterweights in boxing history. At the same time, recent history presents us with impressive fighters like Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao.
In particular, Robinson is often the greatest boxer of all time, regardless of weight category. He was lightning quick, and his strength allowed him to use either hand to finish his opponents.
Top fighters today: Errol Spence and Keith Thurman are the best welterweights in the world. Spence is a hard-charging body puncher with amazing reflexes and a vicious streak. Thurman is a boxer-puncher with incredible knockout power and gliding footwork.
Other notable fighters in the welterweight division include Shawn Porter, Danny Garcia, and an increasingly rusty Manny Pacquiao.
Junior Middleweight (Super Welterweight or Light Middleweight)
Weight limit: 154 pounds (69.9 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Contemporaries who never fought each other to settle the score, both Thomas Hearns and Mike McCallum are candidates for the title of best junior middleweight ever, even though they never fought against each other. The time that Hearns spent at the weight was relatively short but truly remarkable.
His boxing prowess and hitting strength at the weight made it nearly impossible for anyone to defeat him. In particular, McCallum stood out from the crowd because he was exceptional in virtually every game area.
Top fighters today: Southpaw Cuban Erislandy is one of the world’s best fighters. Many fight fans are asking whether or not Jermell Charlo has eclipsed Lara as the toughest division opponent due to his recent power surge. Jermell Charlo is Lara’s former stablemate and has been the best of the lot for a long time.
On the other hand, Jarrett Hurd is ridiculously enormous for the category, and he has been chopping down his competitors like they are trees. The weapon of choice here is the Hurd.
Middleweight
Weight limit: 160 pounds (72.6 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Carlos Monzon and Marvin Hagler had fantastic title reigns as middleweight champions.
However, this historically deep weight class includes the likes of an older but still fantastic Sugar Ray Robinson and a young and ethereally exceptional Roy Jones Jr. Top Historical Boxers: Carlos Monzon and Marvin Hagler had incredible title reigns as light heavyweight champions.
When you add Bernard Hopkins’s technical accuracy and lengthy title reign to the mix, you have one of the most impressive collections of divisional talent in the annals of boxing history.
Canelo Alvarez and Gennady Golovkin fought to a draw in September, leaving many people uncertain as to who is the finest middleweight in the world at present.
Top fighters today: Gennady Golovkin, Canelo Alvarez, Billy Joe Saunders, and Daniel Jacobs perform at their best in their respective fights. It appears that the middleweight category will remain unchanged for the foreseeable future, and any of those four fighters have a legitimate shot at winning the championship.
Super Middleweight
Weight limit: 168 pounds (76.2 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Two of the most impressive examples of super middleweight brilliance have recently emerged. Joe Calzaghe and Andre Ward retired at the pinnacle of their sport with no defeat history. Calzaghe was a boxer with a distinctive rhythm and cadence who had lightning-fast hands and delivered blistering punches.
Boxing’s purest form is “pure fundamentals,” and Ward epitomized that ideal. His form was flawless, rivaling any competitor in history, and he possessed deceiving power in both hands.
Top fighters today: Unbeaten Mexican boxer among the best active competitors today, Gilberto Ramirez is a man who is constantly on the move. In the coming years, he and James DeGale, George Groves, and Chris Eubank Jr. should contribute to producing engaging and high-caliber boxing exhibitions.
While Ramirez is typically the one to bring the most offensive firepower to the table, the other three competitors generally are more adept at picking their locations.
Light Heavyweight
Weight limit: 175 pounds (79.4 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Ezzard Charles fought a who’s who of sturdy competition at 175 pounds (79.4 kilograms) throughout the late 1940s and early 1950s to make his claim as the best of a generation. Ezzard Charles is one of the top historical fighters.
Archie Moore, Charles Burley, and Joey Maxim were rivals in this battle. Michael Spinks of the 1980s became the first light heavyweight to earn the heavyweight crown. Michael Spinks won the title in 1985.
Top fighters today: The most dangerous punching southpaws among today’s top fighters. However, Adonis Stevenson has been the lineal champion at 175 pounds (79.4 kilograms) for a significant time.
The fact that he chooses to fight only lame-duck opponents after lengthy layoffs are unsettling. The real favorite among the fans is Sergey Kovalev, a smart power puncher who is also vicious.
He throws punches with genuine intent and has the skills of leading his opponents into more difficult strikes. In addition, the inclusion of rapidly emerging stars Artur Beterbiev and Dimitri Bivol should make 175 much more exciting than it already was.
Cruiserweight
Weight limit: 200 pounds (90.7 kilograms)
Top historical fighters: Besides being one of the best heavyweights of all time, Evander Holyfield is generally the best cruiserweight ever and is one of boxing’s lesser-known facts to a mainstream sports audience. This is one of the historical fighters that many deem the best cruiserweight ever.
In the 1980s, Holyfield established his dominance over the division and brought it together uniquely. Only David Haye, another brilliant cruiserweight in the 2000s, won all of the main title belts in the division, matching Holyfield’s accomplishment. Holyfield was the only fighter to accomplish this.
Top fighters today: The cruiserweight category produces some of the most exciting fights. However, it can be difficult for American fans to track fights on television because the sport has become more of an international phenomenon.
It would appear that Oleksandr Usyk of the Ukraine and Murat Gassiev of Russia are the greatest cruiserweights competing today. Other prominent competitors include Denis Lebedev and Krzysztof Glowacki, both veterans.
Heavyweight
Weight limit: Unlimited
Top historical fighters: Joe Louis and Muhammad Ali are the best heavyweights of all time. Many people believe that Louis was the best offensive fighter in the history of the sport, and he still retains the record for successfully defending his titles 25 times.
In the meantime, Ali won the heavyweight championship three times thanks to his quick hands and great reflexes during what is widely considered the division’s most successful era.
Other historically great heavyweights include Jack Johnson, the first black person to win the heavyweight title; Jack Dempsey, a fighter whose popularity in the early 20th century rivaled that of baseball’s Babe Ruth; and Rocky Marciano, the only heavyweight champion to retire undefeated and stay retired that way.
Other historically great heavyweights include Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder, the two best heavyweights in the world.
Top fighters today: Joshua is a big, strong, and fundamentally sound heavyweight who compares favorably to Lennox Lewis, a former all-time great who lays claim to a portion of the heavyweight championship.
Each of these fighters has a claim to a portion of the heavyweight championship. Wilder, on the other hand, is a physical anomaly with incredible hitting power in both hands.
Luis Ortiz of Cuba and Joseph Parker of New Zealand are both hot commodities in a division that is becoming increasingly interesting. In addition, the former lineal champion Tyson Fury is still working toward making a comeback.
Are Women’s Boxing Weights the Same as Men’s?
The women’s competition uses the same weight divisions as the men’s. Despite this, in many of the most important competitions, women are only given access to a smaller number of the available weight classes. This is either because there are not enough competitors or there are not enough open spots.
Final Thoughts
You now have all the important information on the different weight categories for boxing. The boxers are in divisions to help ensure that the contests are fair.
For instance, a boxer who weighs more than 200 pounds (90.7 kilograms) has a punch that packs more of a punching blow, but a boxer who weighs 140 pounds (63.5 kilograms) is likely to be quicker and more agile than the heavier boxer.
You can also move fights between weight divisions if the participant wants to test themselves against other opponents or compete at a higher or lower weight class. Note that fighters on the cusp of a weight division can choose to fight in the lower or upper division.