Ring Ratings Update: Bute on the rise

Lucian Bute supplants Andre Ward atop the 168-pound division after his impressive KO of Librado Andrade.

Sometimes many months go by without a change atop any of the weight divisions in THE RING ratings.

The fact the No. 1 spot on the super middleweight list changed in consecutive weeks is an indication of how volatile – and exciting – the 168-pound division is.

Last week, Andre Ward jumped from No. 9 to No. 1 after his impressive victory over then-No. 1 Mikkel Kessler.

This week, Lucian Bute ascends from No. 2 to No. 1 – bumping Ward down a slot – after his fourth-round knockout of Librado Andrade in their rematch Saturday in Quebec City, Canada.

“THE RING’s Ratings Advisory Panel voted roughly 5-1 in favor of advancing Bute past Ward,” said Nigel Collins, THE RING magazine’s Editor-in-Chief. “The consensus was that now Bute has emphatically erased the stigma of his controversial decision over Andrade. The victory and his overall superior resume at 168 pounds is enough to nudge Ward out of the top spot.”

Stay tuned, though. More changes are likely with the Super Six Boxing Classic in full stride.

Here are the other changes in THE RING Ratings:

SUPER MIDDLEWEIGHTS: The loss drops Andrade (No. 5 last week) to No. 8. That pushes up Sakio Bika (No. 6 last week), Arthur Abraham (No. 7 last week) and Allan Green (No. 8 last week) one rung each.

LIGHTWEIGHTS: Even though the official decision was a draw, Ali Funeka advances from No. 4 to No. 3 because of his dominating display against unbeaten, but unranked Joan Guzman. Funeka’s promotion causes Rolando Reyes to slip from No. 3 to No. 4.

“All but one of the panel members who responded this week were outraged by the Funeka-Guzman decision,” Collins said. “It is rare a fighter advances following a draw. But in this case, we felt Funeka should be rewarded regardless of the official decision.”

FLYWEIGHTS: Koki Kameda rockets from No. 6 to No. 1 following his decision over Daisuke Naito (No. 1 last week). Naito falls to No. 4. The shakeup also bumps down Omar Narvaez (No. 4 last week) and Takefumi Sakata (No. 5 last week) to No. 5 and No. 6, respectively.

STRAWWEIGHTS: Oleydong Sithsamerchai (No. 3 last week) moves to No. 2 following his narrow majority decision over Juan Palacios, who retains his No. 8 ranking. Raul Garcia slips from No. 2 to No. 3 in order to accommodate Sithsamerchai’s advancement.