Pound for pound explained

For other uses see Pound for pound (disambiguation).

Pound for pound is a ranking used in combat sports, such as boxing,[1] wrestling,[2] or mixed martial arts,[3] of who the better fighters are irrespective of their weight, i.e. adjusted to compensate for weight class. As these fighters do not compete directly, judging the best fighter pound for pound is subjective, and ratings vary.

Boxing

See main article: Boxing pound for pound rankings.

In boxing, the term was historically associated with fighters such as Benny Leonard and Sugar Ray Robinson who were widely considered to be the most skilled fighters of their day, to distinguish them from the generally more popular (and better compensated) heavyweight champions.[4] Since 1990, The Ring magazine has maintained a pound for pound ranking of fighters.[4]

Mixed martial arts

See main article: UFC Rankings and ONE Championship Rankings. Some mixed martial arts promotions have pound-for-pound rankings, including Ultimate Fighting Championship since 2013, ONE Championship since 2020,[5] and Bellator MMA since 2021.[6] [7] There are also multiple unofficial MMA pound-for-pound rankings, including by ESPN.com,[8] Sherdog,[9] [10] Fight Matrix,[11] [12] MMA Fighting[13] and Tapology.[14] [15]

Kickboxing / Muay Thai

ONE Championship publishes pound-for-pound rankings for kickboxing and Muay Thai since 2020. Combat Press and Beyond Kickboxing also publish pound-for-pound rankings for kickboxing.[16] [17]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: BBC pound-for-pound British rankings. BBC. 17 June 2011.
  2. Web site: Bader . Mark . USA Men's P4P Freestyle Rankings . May 31, 2017 . FloWrestling . 20 October 2018 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20181020053100/https://www.flowrestling.org/articles/5066106-usa-mens-p4p-freestyle-rankings . 20 October 2018 .
  3. Web site: The pound for pound debate. https://web.archive.org/web/20100423000351/http://www.fightersonlymagazine.co.uk/features/viewarticle.php?id=4258. dead. 23 April 2010. Fighters Only Magazine. 29 June 2010.
  4. Web site: Pound-for-Pound: A History . 17 June 2012 . Dettloff . William . . 9 May 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150509014259/http://www.hbo.com/boxing/inside/features/article/pound-for-pound-a-history.html . dead .
  5. Web site: ONE Championship Unveils First Official Athlete Rankings . ONE Championship . 27 April 2020.
  6. Web site: UFC releases its first official fighter rankings . Sportsnet . 5 February 2013.
  7. Web site: Bellator MMA Fighter Rankings: Patricio Pitbull, Cris Cyborg top pound-for-pound lists in inaugural tabulation . CBS Sports . 29 March 2021.
  8. Web site: MMA pound-for-pound rankings: Just one small move in men's top 10, but voters add new names . 23 September 2022 . ESPN.com.
  9. Web site: Sherdog's Pound-for-Pound Top 10 Rankings . Sherdog . 22 August 2022.
  10. Web site: Sherdog's WMMA Pound-for-Pound Top 10 . Sherdog . 22 August 2022.
  11. Web site: Pound for Pound . Fight Matrix . 16 October 2022.
  12. Web site: Women's Pound for Pound . Fight Matrix . 16 October 2022.
  13. Web site: MMA Pound-for-Pound Rankings, September 2022: Khamzat Chimaev smashes his way into top 20 . Shaun . Al-Shatti . MMA Fighting . 13 September 2022 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230421193740/https://www.mmafighting.com/2022/9/13/23350128/mma-pound-for-pound-rankings-september-2022-khamzat-chimaev-smashes-his-way-into-top-20 . Apr 21, 2023 .
  14. Web site: The Current Best Pound-for-Pound MMA Fighters . Tapology MMA Rankings . 12 May 2021.
  15. Web site: The Current Best Pound-for-Pound Female MMA Fighters . Tapology MMA Rankings . 12 May 2021.
  16. Web site: Combat Press Kickboxing Rankings: May 2021 . Zach . Aittama . Combat Press . 10 May 2021 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20231009205159/https://combatpress.com/2021/05/combat-press-kickboxing-rankings-may-2021/ . Oct 9, 2023 .
  17. beyond_kick . 1245123183579103232 . Beyond Kickboxing . Our P4P Kickboxing Rankings for April 2020. . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210517190756/https://twitter.com/beyond_kick/status/1245123183579103232 . May 17, 2021 .

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