Deontay Wilder is now ranked #1 by the Ring magazine after his devastating first round knockout of Robert Helenius last week.
The publication, who updated their heavyweight rankings this week, still has Oleksandr Usyk as champion after Tyson Fury was stripped of the Ring belt when he announced his retirement earlier this year.
Fury’s countryman and promotional stablemate Joye Joyce moved up to #3 in the rankings after his 11th round stoppage win over Joseph Parker in Manchester last month, with the New Zealander moving down to #7.
Anthony Joshua may consider himself slightly fortunate to be ranked as high as #2 after a second consecutive defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in August. A fight against Tyson Fury would have been the perfect opportunity for AJ to claim the #1 spot, but alas was not to be.
Former Joshua foe Andy Ruiz Jr moves to #4 in the standings after a decision win last month over experienced Cuban Luis Ortiz, who is now placed at #6. With a final eliminator ordered between Ruiz and Deontay Wilder by the WBC, it looks likely that the former unified champion will get a chance to claim #1 spot in 2023.
Filip Hrgovic and Zhilei Zhang also claim spots in the rankings at #8 and #10 respectively after their gruelling war on the Usyk vs Joshua 2 undercard in Jeddah. Zhang in will be glad to see his efforts recognised, with many observers feeling he was unfortunate on the night not to get the decision.
Skilled contender Frank Sanchez holds the #9 is spot in the rankings after picking up a stoppage victory over Carlos Negron on the Wilder Helenius undercard last week.
Ring Magazine Heavyweight Rankings
Champ – Oleksandr Usyk
- Deontay Wilder
- Anthony Joshua
- Joe Joyce
- Andy Ruiz Jr
- Dillian Whyte
- Luis Ortiz
- Joseph Parker
- Filip Hrgovic
- Frank Sanchez
- Zhilei Zhang
The Ring’s rankings are widely regarded as the gold standard in the spot, with the Ring belt held by most in more esteem than those of any governing body.