The story of the division is best described as four young kings who currently hold crowns across the division. All four of these men now have the opportunity to attempt to become the dominant force in the lightweight game.
The Champions
Teofimo Lopez
Teofimo Lopez shocked the world when he dethroned the three-weight world champion Vasyl Lomachenko. The young American was huge underdog coming in against Lomachenko in October, but he defied the odds and announced himself as the top dog in the division in the process.
He now hold the WBA 'Super', IBF and WBO world lightweight titles
The impressive unanimous decision victory showed that Lopez’s boxing IQ is one of the best in the game. Many world class fighters have failed to solve the riddle that is Loma, but Lopez cut off the angles of the Ukrainian very well and controlled the fight for the majority of the bout. As a result of the win Lopez became the youngest four belt champion in boxing history.
Lopez became IBF lightweight champion in his 15th fight as he knocked out top contender Richard Commey in fantastic fashion. He also dominated talented Japanese lightweight Masayoshi Nakatani in a unanimous decision win.
As well as Lopez’s slick boxing skills he has also showed the ability to finish of his opponents with 12 knockouts in his 16 fights.
Fights with all of the other title holders have been rumoured and a rematch with Loma could also be on the cards. Whoever he fights he has now earned the right call the shots as he will undoubtedly be the A-side of any event.
Gervonta Davis is nicknamed ‘Tank’ and he certainly lives up to this alias. Davis is 24-0 with a stunning 96 percent knockout rate. Davis is a four-time world champion, and in two weight classes. He is currently the WBA world champion.
The American has been around since 2013 and his scary punching power has seen him become a feared opponent. Davis has displayed that he has power in both hands and has devastating speed, accuracy, and strength in his locker.
Davis has added some great names to his resume over the past few years, knocking out the likes of Jose Pedraza, Francisco Fonseca, and Yuriorkis Gamboa.
In his most recent performance, he beat the four-division world champion Leo Santa Cruz with a tremendous knockout. Only German Meraz has went the distance with Davis across his career.
Floyd Mayweather mentors Gervonta and he has hailed Davis as one of the most exciting fighters in the sport.
Devin Haney made his debut in the professional game after winning seven national titles as an amateur. After four years as a professional Haney won the vacant interim WBC world championship in 2019 but was promoted to the status of full champion shortly after.
Haney has had still undefeated as a professional and has 25 wins on his record, 15 of these have come within the distance.
The young American fighter is coming off the back of a completely unanimous decision over Yuriorkis Gamboa, winning every round on two of the judges score cards. A few fights before he became the first man to stop Antonio Moran knocking him out in the 7th round.
Rumours have been hotting up of a possible unification clash with Teofimo Lopez recently.
Ryan Garcia has been a star on social media for many years and he has gathered a big following since his debut in 2016. The 22-year-old had some doubters over the years as they some people may have questioned if Garcia would be exposed at the top of the sport.
In his most recent win, he proved the doubters as he crippled 2012 Olympic gold winner Luke Campbell with a brutal body shot. Garcia had to show heart and grit in the win as he had to come off the canvas to win the fight.
By winning this fight he won the vacant WBC interim world title that was previously owned by Devin Haney before he was promoted to full champion.
Garcia has great hand speed and has an array of dangerous shots in his armoury. He has the potential to become one of the sports biggest stars as he has a combination of skill and showmanship.
In recent reports it looked like he was set to face boxing Icon Manny Pacquiao in his next fight but that now looks unlikely.
The contenders
Vasyl Lomachenko
Nobody would have expected to see Vasyl Lomachenko in the contender column last year, but the Ukrainian was undone by Teofimo Lopez.
There is no denying Loma’s greatness as he is regarded as one of the greatest amateur boxers of all time and one of the pound-for-pound greats. Lomachenko has made great fighter look ordinary in the past with his superior boxing skills and unmatched footwork.
Fighters such as Luke Campbell, Anthony Crolla, Jose Pedraza, Jorge Linares and Guillermo Rigondeaux have been helpless in their efforts to stop Lomachenko as he finds ways to break them down them down and outbox them.
Lomachenko is a two-time Olympic gold medallist and a three-weight world champion as a professional. Despite this it looks like he has been frozen out of the lightweight equation with four unbeaten champions looking to take each other’s belt. Lomachenko may have to force these champions to face him by having one or two fights against the top contenders to get a shot at his titles.
The matrix will want to avenge his recent loss and reign supreme over the lightweight division once more.
George Kambosos Jnr
George Kambosos Jnr is a ferocious, fast talker fighter from down under. The 27-year-old had completely dominated the domestic scene in Australia before staring to build his profile across the world in 2017.
The Aussie has worked himself up to number one in the WBO and IBF rankings over the past few years and should be inline for a title shot soon.
Last time out Kambosos picked up a win against former featherweight world champion Lee Selby. The result was by far the best of his career and he showed the ability to mix it with a top-quality fighter.
Richard Commey
Richard Commey is an experienced and heavy hitting lightweight. The Ghanaian has an 81 percent knockout rate in 29 wins as a pro. He has a long reach which allows him to set up his power punches with a long jab.
Commey has shown he is willing to fight anyone anywhere as he has fought in six different countries across his career. He currently has a record of 29(26)-3(1)
He will be looking to bounce back after his knockout loss to current king pin Teofimo Lopez. He is set to face Jackson Marinez in a few months’ time.
Ones to watch
James Tennyson
James Tennyson has really impressed since his move up from featherweight. The man from Belfast has smashed his way up the lightweight rankings in 3 of the 4 major governing bodies.
He challenged for a world title at super-featherweight in 2018 but was outclassed by Tevin Farmer who stopped the Northern Irishman in the fifth round.
He has six knockouts in six fights at lightweight and his power and relentless pressure could cause problems for any fighter in the division.
Johnny Nelson recently claimed that Tennyson could go toe to toe with the likes of Gervonta Davis in the near future.
Isaac Cruz Gonzalez
Another young prospect in the lightweight division is Isaac Cruz Gonzalez. The young Mexican has 20 wins so far in his career. Isaac Cruz is ranked in the top 15 in the IBF and WBO governing bodies.
‘The pitbull’ has one loss on his record way back in 2016 in his 6th professional fight. Since then though he has 12 knockouts in 16 fights.
As you can see the whole of the division is full of world class talent, 2021 could be there year where we see many mega-fights in boxings most stacked division.
Who do you think will reign supreme over the lightweight division in 2021? Let us know @VAVELBOXING