Devon Alexander's TKO of Juan Urango vaulted him to No. 2 in THE RING's junior welterweight rankings.
Two-time welterweight beltholder Paul Williams is being considered for a bout with WBC junior middleweight titleholder Saul Alvarez in September.
Ring Ratings Update: Is Alexander in position for RING title?
|
Alexander (20-0, 13 knockouts) unified two 140-pound titles by beating the always dangerous Urango (22-3-1, 17 KOs), THE RING’s No. 6-rated junior welterweight going into Saturday’s fight that took place in Uncasville, Conn., and leapfrogged former champ Ricky Hatton and current beltholder Amir Khan in the magazine’s junior welterweight ratings. “After Alexander handed Urango his first kayo loss, the only tough decision was whether he should be ranked No. 3 or bump Amir Khan out of the No. 2 position,” said Nigel Collins, Editor-in-Chief of THE RING magazine. “After comparing their records and reading the emails from THE RING Ratings Panel, we decided that Alexander’s emphatic victory over such a rugged contender was enough for him to edge out Khan, at least for the time being.” Obviously, THE RING’s ratings committee is more impressed with Alexander’s TKO of Urango and his stoppage of former titleholder Junior Witter in his previous bout than Khan’s dominant decision over beltholder Andreas Kotelnik and his one-round blowout of unheralded Dmitriy Salita, and most fans would agree with that opinion. Most fans would also agree that the best 140-pound fight that can be made right now is a showdown between Alexander and THE RING’s No. 1-rated junior welterweight Timothy Bradley. If that fascinating matchup can be made this year most would assume THE RING’s junior welterweight title would be on the line, however, the magazine’s 140-pound championship is still held by Manny Pacquiao, who also holds a 147-pound belt, which he will attempt to defend against Joshua Clottey on Saturday. Given that Pacquiao hasn’t defended the junior welterweight championship since he won it by knocking out Ricky Hatton last May, and most expect him to beat Clottey and stay at welterweight to face the winner of the Shane Mosley-Floyd Mayweather showdown, Collins recently asked the Filipino icon’s manager Mike Koncz if the fighter was considering vacating THE RING belt. Koncz told that Collins that Pacquiao wanted to hold onto the 140-pound title because he “intended to defend it following his March 13 bout” with Clottey. THE RING granted Pacquiao’s request to hold onto the title until after the Clottey fight but informed Koncz that if the two-division threat’s next fight was not a defense of THE RING junior welterweight title it would tantamount to relinquishing the belt. Who knows what the future holds? Mosley and Mayweather could be tied up with a rematch of their first fight later in the year, which would leave Pacquiao without a welterweight dance partner and open the possibility of the pound-for-pound king’s return to the junior welterweight division. The winner of a Bradley-Alexander fight would be the most worthy opponent for Pacquiao and among the champ’s most attractive 140-pound options along with a showdown with lightweight KO artist Edwin Valero. But if Pacquiao doesn’t return to the 140-pound division and a Bradley-Alexander fight can be made there’s a good chance that THE RING’s Nos. 1 and 2-rated junior welterweight contenders will be fighting for the magazine’s title, which is the way it should be. RING RATINS UPDATE JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHTS: Alexander (No. 4 last week) jumps to No. 2 on the strength of his kayo of Urango (No. 6 last week), who falls to No. 7. Alexander’s advancement also pushes down Khan (No. 2 last week) and Hatton (No. 3 last week) one spot each, respectively. Marcos Maidana (No. 7 last week) replaces Urgano at No. 6. JUNIOR FEATHERWEIGHTS: Bernard Dunne (No. 5 last week) has retired and is, therefore, removed from the ratings. All 122-pounders rated below Dunne last week climb up one rung each, while Kohei Oba debuts at No. 10. |