With the super middleweight division heating up to extraordinarily high levels, the middleweight division has been completely lackluster as of late. Arthur Abraham and Jermain Taylor (among others) have moved up to 168 pounds and champion Kelly Pavlik hasn’t had any major fights lined up. Here’s a look at the current boxing middleweight division rankings.

Middleweight Division Rankings Last Updated July 2009.

1. Kelly Pavlik – Despite the schooling at the hands of Bernard Hopkins, the fight was held at 170 lbs and Pavlik is still the reigning middleweight champion. However, he has been facing soft competition at that weight class since winning the title, and needs to meet a quality opponent ASAP. There have been rumors about a clash with Felix Sturm, but nothing is solidified yet. His biggest competition in the division is occupied for at least the next year, as Abraham is participating in the Super Six.
2. Arthur Abraham – Abraham made his first American appearance a memorable one, knocking out Edison Miranda in quick fashion. He’s undefeated and was a longtime titleholder but relinquished his IBF strap to participate in the Showtime Super Middleweight Tournament and it is unknown therefore if he will continue to campaign at middleweight in the future. Until he fights at 168 and we see how he does though, he’ll remain listed here.
3. Felix Sturm – We got a glimpse of Sturm years ago when he was robbed in his fight against Oscar De La Hoya. Since then he’s toiled away in Europe, and is currently a titleholder. Like the two men above him, the string of mediocre opponents needs to come to an end. Hopefully Sturm and Pavlik can now close a deal, especially as their choice of opponents has dwindled.
4. Paul Williams – The tri-division madman that is Paul Williams absolutely dominated Winky Wright in their recent match up, and guess what happened? Even fewer people wanted to fight him as a result! Williams may just get a shot at champion Kelly Pavlik in the near future.
5. Winky Wright – It was surprising to see Winky get so thoroughly dominated by Williams, especially considering where they have each spent the bulk of their careers. Winky has to make up his mind if he wants to be a full time fighter or what his plans are for the future.

Other Middleweight Contenders: Sergio Mora, John Duddy, Giovanni Lorenzo, Marco Antonio Rubio and Sebastian Sylvester.

More Boxing Weight Class Rankings:

• 147-154 pounds – Boxing Junior Middleweight Rankings
• 160-168 pounds – Boxing Super Middleweight Rankings

Written by: Jake Emen