- Here's a list of the top undefeated boxers in 2023.
- Terence Crawford leads the list.
Due to their unscathed record and impressive run, the probability of undefeated boxers being favorites in boxing odds is almost automatic in today’s era of online sports betting. This feat is not new to the sport because we have seen great fighters who retired without sustaining a loss throughout their professional career.
Several fighters aim to replicate this extraordinary milestone as they currently hold an undefeated record in their respective careers. Here are the top six active undefeated boxers in 2023.
Top 6 Active Undefeated Boxers in 2023
Terence Crawford – 39-0
After an illustrious amateur career between 2002 and 2007, Terence Crawford made his professional debut in March 2008 and stopped Brian Cummings with a first-round knockout. Crawford waited for five years and needed 21 straight victories to earn his first-ever title fight. He defeated Ricky Burns via a unanimous decision in March 2014 to claim the WBO World Lightweight Title, his maiden title.
From then on, he defended his title multiple times, moved up to higher divisions and collected more titles. “Bud” won the WBO Light Welterweight Title, WBC Light Welterweight Title, IBF Light Welterweight Title, WBA Light Welterweight Title, and the WBO Welterweight Title. He has a 16-0 record in world title fights, including 13 TKO/KOs. Most of his title victories are in the light welterweight division and welterweight division.
Some of the most notable names he defeated were Jeff Horn, Amir Khan, Kell Brook and Shawn Porter. Crawford, one of the top pound-for-pound boxers in the world today, has recently defeated David Avanesyan via sixth-round knockout in December 2022 to retain his WBO World Welterweight title and remain undefeated in his pro career.
Dmitry Bivol – 21-0
The lone light heavyweight boxer on this list is undefeated boxer Dmitry Bivol. Born in Tokmak, Kyrgyzstan, Bivol had a successful amateur run by winning multiple gold medals in the European and Russian circuits. His first amateur triumph happened in 2006 when he bagged the World Cadet Championship gold medal in Istanbul, Turkey. Before he jumped to the pros, Bivol collected another gold medal in the 2014 Russian National Championships.
The now-California native made his professional debut in November 2014 and TKO’ed Jorge Rodriguez Olivera in the sixth round of their showdown. Ten wins, including eight TKO/KOs, finishes later, and he finally earned his opportunity to win a major boxing title.
That perfect start in the paid ranks had catapulted him to an immaculate run which saw him win the WBA Light Heavyweight Title in November 2017 when he knocked out Trent Broadhurst via first-round knockout. Bivol’s reign as the WBA title holder began with this vicious knockout, and he was able to defend it multiple times.
After that, he successfully fended off seven challengers (against Sullivan Barrera, Issac Chilemba, Jean Pascal, Joe Smith Jr., Gilbert Castillo Rivera, Craig Richards, and Umar Salamnov) to retain his championship before setting up a gigantic showdown with Canelo Alvarez in May 2022. Bivol rose to fame when he unanimously beat the Mexican superstar.
Errol Spence – 28-0
Errol Spence is another welterweight champion who made the list of active undefeated boxers. Spence’s boxing career began in the amateur ranks in 2008, where he participated in various national and international tournaments. He made his amateur debut at the United States National Golden Gloves Tournament in Michigan but came short of a podium finish.
The Desoto, Texas native qualified for the 2012 Olympics but failed to get a medal in the quadrennial meet. He lost to Russia’s Andrey Zamkovoy and crashed out of the competition. But this did not hinder Spence from going professional, which he decided in 2012.
The “Truth” stopped 18 of his 21 opponents and secured his maiden title fight with Kell Brook in May 2017. He fully capitalized on the opportunity and knocked out Brook in the 11th round to win the IBF World Welterweight Title. Because of this win over Brook, the Desoto, Texas resident solidified his place as a top name in the division.
Since then, Spence added six more fights against Lamont Peterson, Carlos Ocampo, Mikey Garcia, Shawn Porter, Danny Garcia, and Yordenis Ugas to add the WBC World Welterweight and WBA Super Welterweight titles. A unification bout against Terence Crawford will go down later this 2023. Spence is currently ranked as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world by ESPN.
Devin Haney – 30-0
The youngest boxer on this list is Daven Haney. He is fresh off his title defense against nemesis George Kambosos Jr. on October 16, where he reasserted his mastery over the Aussie. It was his third consecutive win against challengers who tried to dethrone him as the undisputed lightweight king. This win solidified Haney’s place at the top of boxing’s lightweight division as per ESPN rankings.
Haney immediately transitioned to the pros after a brief stint in the amateur setting, where he only competed thrice in the US National Championships and had one stint in the World Junior Championships. The Las Vegas native was able to appear in 146 amateur fights, racking 138 wins, and only lost eight bouts.
He has already racked up 20 victories (13 of which were TKO/KOs). Haney’s first significant title triumph happened in January 2019 after unanimously beating Xolisani Ndongeni for the WBC International Lightweight and WBO Inter-Continental Lightweight Titles. Before bagging these titles, he won minor titles such as the WBC Youth World Lightweight Title, IBF USBA Lightweight Title, and IBF North American Lightweight Title.
Since then, the “Dream” collected eight more wins and four more championships (WBC, IBF, WBO, and WBA Lightweight titles) to become the current king of the 135-pounders. Among the other notable names he defeated were Alfredo Santiago, Yuriorkis Gamboa, Jorge Linares, and Joseph Diaz. He is fresh off a unanimous decision over Vasiliy Lomachenko in May 2023 to retain all of his lightweight belts.
Naoya Inoue – 24-0
Japanese superstar Naoya Inoue, a three-division world champion, represents the undefeated fighters from Asia. He made his amateur debut during the 2010 Asian Youth Championship, where he bagged the bronze medal and ended his career in the amateurs with a silver medal during the 2012 Asian Olympic Qualifier in Astana, Kazakhstan. The “Monster” also had a short amateur career from 2010 to 2012, appearing only in five major amateur tournaments worldwide and in Asia.
He ended up with a 75-6 record before officially moving to the professional ranks in 2012. Inoue only needed six fights to win his first world title after stopping Adrian Hernandez in April 2014 and capturing the WBC Light Flyweight Title. This has set Inoue in the right direction as he went on an immaculate run.
After one successful title defense, he instantly moved to a higher weight class and won the WBO World Super Flyweight Title over Omar Andres Narvaez in December 2014. He was able to defend it on seven occasions before moving up again in the bantamweight division and finding similar success. He has a perfect 18-0 record in championship fights and 16 TKO/KO finishes.
Inoue obtained the WBC, WBA, and IBF titles and became the division’s lineal champion by beating the likes of Jamie McDonnell, Juan Carlos Payano, Emmanuel Rodriguez, and Nonito Donaire. Because of this impressive list of victories against big-time names, the Japanese cemented his on ESPN’s pound-for-pound list. He came off a successful title defense over Paul Butler in December 2022.
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