Determining who deserves to be lauded as the greatest boxer of the 21st century is no easy task, but the listeners of talkSPORT have given it their best shot.
Ahead of the epic fight between Canelo Alvarez and Terence Crawford that carries massive implications for the placement of this list, several members of the talkSPORT Dugout opinion panel have cast their verdict.
The group was given a list of notable names who excelled from 2000 onwards, and of those boxers, ten were selected.
Fighters who narrowly missed out on the final top 10 include Vasyl Lomachenko, who made the cut with 43 per cent of respondents, Andre Ward (35 per cent), Juan Manuel Marquez (31 per cent) and Naoya Inoue (25 per cent).
The full list can be found below…
1. Oleksandr Usyk (96 per cent)
Record: 24-0, 15 KOs
Years active: 2013-present
Key achievements during the century: Undisputed (WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO) cruiserweight and heavyweight world champion
Topping our listeners’ list is Oleksandr Usyk.
The Ukrainian slickster first went about conquering a very strong 2010s cruiserweight division, making six title defences before becoming the first undisputed 200lbs champion of the four-belt era.
He then moved up to heavyweight in 2019 to achieve the same feat, casting aside Anthony Joshua, Daniel Dubois, and Tyson Fury twice each en route to unify all the major sanctioning body belts on two separate occasions.
=2. Floyd Mayweather (93 per cent)
Record: 50-0, 27 KOs
Mayweather won world titles in five seperate weight classesGETTYYears active: 1996-2017
Key achievements during the century: Five-division world champion
While Floyd Mayweather never became an undisputed champion, his body of work speaks for itself.
During an illustrious career that included world title reigns in five divisions from super featherweight to super welterweight, Mayweather beat six fighters who were ranked within the top 10 pound-for-pound list at the time he fought them.
These were: Ricky Hatton, Juan Manuel Marquez, Shane Mosley, Robert Guerrero, Canelo Alvarez and Manny Pacquiao.
And that doesn’t include the likes of Oscar De La Hoya, Miguel Cotto, Marcos Maidana, and Zab Judah, who all fell to Mayweather at the peak of his powers.
=2. Manny Pacquiao (93 per cent)
Pacquiao is the only eight-weight world champion in boxing historyGettyRecord: 62-8-3, 39 KOs
Years active: 1995-present
Key achievements during the century: Won world titles in seven of his eight divisions
Manny Pacquiao is the only eight-weight world champion in boxing history, and seven of those weight classes were conquered in the 21st Century.
In his prime, Pacquiao beat the likes of Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Oscar De La Hoya and Miguel Cotto.
And it appears his career isn’t over just yet, with the Filipino puncher coming desperately close to defeating WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios at the ripe old age of 46 in July.
4. Joe Calzaghe (85 per cent)
Calzaghe is Britain’s best boxer of the 21st CenturyGETTYRecord: 46-0, 32 KOs
Years active: 1993-2008
Key achievements during the century: Two-weight world champion
Undoubtedly the best British fighter of the 21st Century, Joe Calzaghe was never beaten during a stellar 46-fight career.
Battling through serious hand injuries, the Welsh warrior won three of the four major belts at super middleweight (WBA, WBC, and WBO) with an exceptional display against Mikkel Kessler before moving up to light-heavyweight to win the lineal belt from Bernard Hopkins, which he subsequently defended against Roy Jones Jr.
5. Oscar De La Hoya (80 per cent)
GettyDe La Hoya’s best years were in the 1990s, but he was excellent in the 2000s as well[/caption]Record: 39-6, 30KOs
Years active: 1992-2008
Key achievements during the century: Won world titles in two of six divisions
Oscar De La Hoya’s 21st Century résumé doesn’t include notable wins over Pernell Whitaker, Hector Camacho or Julio Cesar Chavez Sr (twice).
But a lot of his most famous nights came in the 2000s.
In September 2002, he stopped Fernando Vargas to become unified WBA and WBC super welterweight champion, and in June 2004, he added the WBO middleweight belt to his glittering collection with a hard-fought decision win over Felix Sturm
De La Hoya lost five times from 2000 to 2008, but all of these came against elite-level competition.
6. Roy Jones Jr (78 per cent)
Jones Jr won world titles from super middleweight all the way up to heavyweightGettyRecord: 66-10, 47KOs
Years active: 1989-2023
Key achievements during the century: Won world titles in two of four weight divisions, undisputed at light heavyweight
Roy Jones Jr is widely considered to be the best boxer of the 1990s, but he also enjoyed marked success in the 2000s as well.
Many of his best wins at light-heavyweight happened during this time, including notable world title defences against Antonio Tarver and Clinton Woods.
In 2003, after compiling an impressive 49-1 record and winning world titles in three separate weight classes, ‘Captain Hook’ moved up to heavyweight to challenge John Ruiz for the WBA strap.
Despite conceding 33lbs, Jones Jr was able to outclass Ruiz to win on points.
7. Canelo Alvarez (72 per cent)
Canelo is the reigning undisputed super middleweight kingGettyRecord: 63-2-2, 39KOs
Years active: 2005-present
Key achievements during the century: Four-weight world champion, undisputed at super middleweight
Between November 2019 and May 2022, Canelo was recognised by Ring Magazine as the pound-for-pound best fighter of the planet.
In order to earn this lofty status, he had to pick up world titles at super welterweight, middleweight and light heavyweight before achieving undisputed supremacy at super middleweight.
Only Dmitry Bivol and Mayweather have defeated Canelo in a fruitful 20-year career, which continues to flourish.
8. Wladimir Klitschko (70 per cent)
Klitschko is the second longest reigning heavyweight champion of all timeGETTYRecord: 64-5, 53KOs
Years active: 1996-2017
Key achievements during the century: Unified WBA, IBF and WBO heavyweight champion
While Vitali Klitschko is considered to be the more talented brother in most boxing circles, it is Wladimir who carved out the better legacy.
The Ukrainian competed in more heavyweight world title fights than anyone in history, while his second reign was only surpassed in length by the great Joe Louis.
That legendary run went from April 2006 to November 2015, spanning 9 years, 7 months and 6 days.
9. Bernard Hopkins (60 per cent)
Hopkins is the oldest world champion of all timegettyRecord: 55-8-2, 32 KOs
Years active: 1988-2016
Key achievements during the century: Two-division world champion, undisputed at middleweight
Bernard Hopkins was 35 years old by the time the new century was welcomed in, but that didn’t stop him from establishing himself as one of the all-time great middleweights in the early 2000s with wins over Felix Trinidad, De La Hoya, and Keith Holmes.
His undisputed 160lbs reign was followed by a move to light heavyweight, where he showed unprecedented longevity to become a three-time 175lbs champion in his forties.
His last reign ended in November 2014 at the hands of Sergey Kovalev when Hopkins was 49 years, 297 days old, making him the oldest world champion in the history of the sport.
10. Terence Crawford (48 per cent)
Crawford continues to dare to be greater after a legendary careerGettyRecord: 41-0, 31KOs
Years active: 2008-present
Key achievements during the century: Four-weight world champion, undisputed at super lightweight and welterweight
Crawford is likely to rise higher on this list should he get his hand raised this weekend.
At present, he is one of three male two-weight undisputed champions (super lightweight and welterweight) from the four-belt era alongside Usyk and Inoue.
Victory over Canelo for the super middleweight crown would put him in a league of his own and would surpass impressive triumphs over Errol Spence Jr, Ricky Burns, Viktor Postol and Julius Indongo that already establish him as a modern great.
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