Male Boxer of The Year 2025 [Power Ranking]

The sport of boxing is on a tear in 2025, and there are big bouts, and huge events, already planned for the upcoming months, too. Below, we’ve put together a power ranking of male boxers who have had the best year all around.

This is not to be confused with a ranking for a specific weight class, or even a boxing pound-for-pound list, because, to feature here, you have to take on the biggest fights you can, win them with style, and be active. At GIVE ME SPORT, we look at who you fought, when you fought them, and how you won, over a 12-month period.

To assess greatness in a calendar year, we looked at the quality of the wins, the abilities of the opponents, and activity level.

Keep scrolling for our picks for who the top-10 leading lights are in the ongoing pursuit to win the Fighter of the Year award, in boxing, in 2025.

10

Isaac Cruz bounced back from a 2024 defeat with aplomb in 2025

Isaac Cruz has made 2025 a comeback year. After losing his WBA super-lightweight title in 2024, he rebounded spectacularly by defeating Angel Fierro by unanimous decision in February, delivering one of the most action-packed fights of the year. Later, Cruz captured the interim WBC super-lightweight title with a dominant unanimous decision win over Omar Salcido in July, dropping him in the final round and winning every round on two cards.

What makes Cruz dangerous is his relentless pressure and willingness to fight in close, always pushing pace, always looking for damage. He may not have had multiple marquee opponents this year like some rivals, but he’s made every fight meaningful. His interim title win puts him back in the championship conversation, and if he lands a big fight before year-end — like one against Lamont Roach, rumored to take place in December — Cruz could make a late surge in Fighter of the Year rankings by showing grit, volume, and unforgettable action.

9

Jesse Rodriguez remains a force in the lighter weight classes

Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez has long cemented himself as one of the brightest young stars in boxing, and in 2025 he’s proving why fans and pundits keep him near the top of pound-for-pound conversations. At just 25 years old, the super flyweight southpaw has already built a reputation for dazzling skill, slick footwork, and the ability to dominate quality opposition with a mix of youthful energy and veteran composure.

In 2025, Rodriguez may only have one marquee fight on the books in 2025, but it was a statement. On July 19, the 24-year-old Texan unified the WBC and WBO super-flyweight titles with a commanding 10th-round stoppage of Phumelela Cafu. Bam’s pressure, body-head combinations, and relentless pace broke down a dangerous challenger and forced the corner to intervene.

That win didn’t just extend Rodriguez’s unbeaten record, as it it reinforced his status as one of boxing’s sharpest young champions. While others in the Fighter of the Year conversation have acitivvity on their side, Bam’s case is built on quality: a dominant unification on the world stage. If he closes out the year with another big fight, his candidacy will only grow stronger.

8

Naoya Inoue continues to dominate

Naoya Inoue might be boxing’s most reliable highlight reel.

In 2025, he’s kept that aura intact, extending his unbeaten record while barely breaking a sweat. What makes Inoue special isn’t just his freakish power at bantamweight, it’s the way he delivers it: crisp, fast, and mercilessly accurate. Blink, and the fight is over.

He’s a pound-for-pound staple, and every time he steps into the ring, fans expect carnage. Few fighters carry that “don’t leave your seat” warning like Inoue. He’s proof that small weights can pack the sport’s biggest punch.

Inoue has enjoyed a busy year as he opened 2025 with a fourth-round KO win over Ye Joon Kim in Tokyo, before rising from the canvas in the second to come back and roar into an eighth-round win over Ramon Cardenas in Vegas, which Give Me Sport was ringside for. Most recently, he outboxed Murodjon Akhmadaliev over 12 rounds in Nagoya, retaining all his belts via unanimous decision.

His body of work so far this year got him this far on the list but if he wants to climb higher he needs to take on, and win, a career rival and/or a big name. Junto Nakatani could be just the opponent.

7

Ricardo Sandoval climbed off the canvas to win his world titles

Ricardo Sandoval has emerged in 2025 as one of boxing’s most exciting little men — a flyweight with relentless output, sharp accuracy, and an ability to seize the moment on the biggest stage. Long considered a dark horse in the lower divisions, Sandoval broke through in spectacular fashion this year when he traveled to Japan and stunned Kenshiro Teraji, stopping the longtime champion in front of his home fans. It was the kind of win that instantly changes a fighter’s career trajectory: a road victory against an elite, established name in the opponent’s territory.

Sandoval didn’t just win, he impressed by applying suffocating pressure, ripping body shots, and showing the kind of durability and composure that defines championship-caliber fighters. In a year when boxing has been dominated by marquee names at higher weights, Sandoval has cut through the noise by producing one of the standout performances of 2025. His upset of Teraji isn’t just a resume-builder; it puts him firmly in the running for Fighter of the Year, and signals the arrival of a new star capable of carrying the flyweight division into a fresh era.

6

Junto Nakatani is fast-turning into one of Japan’s best boxers

Junto “Big Bang” Nakatani is fast becoming bantamweight’s most electric southpaw, and fully deserving of such a nickname. At 31-0 with 24 KOs, the Japanese champ blends power, timing, and surgical aggression — he can box at range, but when he smells blood the pressure goes up fast.

In 2025, he cleared out two major tests: first, he dropped & stopped David Cuellar in the 3rd — body shot, sweeping left hand, stoppage — to retain his WBC strap. Then in June, he unified bantamweight when Ryosuke Nishida’s left eye swelled shut by round six; Nakatani forced a retirement and added the IBF (and The Ring) titles.

What makes him so great is the mix: he has pop, composure under fire, and versatility. He’s as comfortable throwing heat as setting traps.

Next up could be the inevitable showdown with Naoya Inoue. Fans want it, and promoters are eyeing it. It has all the makings of a Hagler-Hearns event for Japan.

5

Chris Eubank Jr beat Conor Benn in a bruising, all-British battle

Considering how long Chris Eubank Jr has been in and around British boxing, both as a son of a legendary fighter, and as a boxer himself, it seems extraordinary that it was only in 2025 that he finally received his flowers.

But boy, were those flowers blooming marvelous.

At a stadium fight that stopped a nation, Eubank and his family rival Conor Benn combined to produce bruising, violent, prizefighting magic in an all-British fight that Eubank rightfully won. It was a leading contender for Event of the Year until Manny Pacquiao rolled back the years to give Mario Barrios all kinds of hell, and Terence Crawford defeated Canelo Alvarez in front of 70,000 people in Las Vegas.

But Eubank’s win wasn’t the only headline moment from the show. His relationship with Chris Eubank Sr was found wanting. But, on the night, his father appeared out of nowhere and joined him for his walk to the ring. There are few families in boxing that live and breathe pure theater than the Eubanks.

And, what’s more, we get to see it all again in the Benn rematch mid-November. Expect, at the very least, another movie. Get your popcorn ready.

4

Shakur Stevenson continues to show he’s one of America’s best

Shakur Stevenson has an extraordinary boxing brain to accompany his defensive mastery.

And though his knockout win over Josh Padley would not be enough by itself to warrant inclusion on this list, it is his win over William Zepeda that punctuates an extraordinary year for him in 2025. What’s more, it came at a time when Oscar de la Hoya and Bernard Hopkins, who know the ins and outs of boxing themselves as Hall-of-Fame fighters themselves, said their Golden Boy boxer Zepeda was always set to beat ‘Kur because he would show the American something he’d never seen before.

Speaking to GIVE ME SPORT ahead of the fight, Stevenson himself admitted that he’d not seen anything like Zepeda, a volume puncher, during his amateur days as well as his pro, but he still looked in firm control, beating the Mexican through counter-punching and adjusting on the fly.

3

Rolly Romero upset Ryan Garcia

Rolly Romero is one of the first Battle-Born Las Vegas fighters to succeed at the world level, as most before him had made the city their home, rather than being born and raised in the Fight Capital.

Much is made of Floyd Mayweather “ruining” boxing because he was so good, he stayed undefeated, and therefore is regarded by his critics to have been too focused on protecting the zero, which has seemingly had a knock-on effect with the generations that came after him. But, to Mayweather’s credit, his status as a legend has attracted many young fighters through his doors at the Mayweather Boxing Club. Romero is one such fighter, though he has since boxed elsewhere, like the Salas Boxing Academy.

Seen as a figure of fun because of his personality, he became the butt of jokes after coming unstuck to Ryan Garcia by finish but then claiming he deserved the win in the post-event presser. But in 2025, his stunning upset victory over Ryan Garcia means people can make jokes no longer. He’s had the last laugh. Rolly is world level, and there’s nothing his haters can do about it.

2

Dmitry Bivol secured his revenge on Artur Beterbiev

Ahead of others on this list is Dmitry Bivol because of the way in which he ensured it was a case of revenge, rather than repeat, when he took on light heavyweight career rival Artur Beterbiev earlier this year.

Bivol dropped a majority decision loss to Beterbiev in their first bout at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, last October. However, he bounced back to beat Beterbiev in a narrow victory earlier this year, to not only re-claim his WBA championship, but annex Beterbiev’s WBC, WBO, IBF, and Ring Magazine titles, too.

There is only one fighter on this list who has a more meaningful victory than Bivol this year, but there is still time for him to add another win to his ledger, should he fight Beterbiev for a third time, rematch Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, or wait and take on the winner of the upcoming 175-pound bout between David Benavidez, who narrowly missed out from being included on this list, and Anthony Yarde.

… but there is one boxer who should be a lock to win Fighter of the Year, as things stand…

1

Terence Crawford out-boxed Canelo Alvarez

There have been many brilliant boxers showcasing their skills against their peers throughout the many weight divisions in the sport, but nobody comes close to what Terence Crawford pulled off on Saturday, the 13th of September, at an event GIVE ME SPORT covered live from the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

It was a phenomenal, legacy-enhancing victory that was somehow, some way, even superior to the pure dismantling of Errol Spence Jr. two years prior. And this is because Crawford had only ever fought once at super welterweight (154), having prevoiusly campaigned at welterweight (147), while debuting at lightweight (135) … and yet he jumped all the way to super middleweight (168) and completely out-thought and out-boxed Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez, a long-reigning face of the sport’s modern era.

Crawford’s 12-round victory is arguably one of the single-best wins in 50 years.