The recent actions of the World Boxing Council have caught the attention of boxing enthusiasts and experts alike as their decision to consider ranking champions from rival organizations has stirred up discussions and debates within the boxing community. This development follows a request by Manny Pacquiao, 45, to compete for the WBC welterweight title after taking a break from boxing for three years. Mauricio Sulaiman, the head of WBC, has shed light on the organization's ranking criteria, which have often left fans puzzled due to seeming inconsistencies about fighters' performances and achievements.
A closer look at WBC's heavyweight rankings reveals some interesting choices; for instance, Zhilei Zhang holds the fourth position despite having lost to Joseph Parker, who is not included in the rankings. In another instance at the cruiserweight division, Noel Mikaelyan occupies a top spot while Jai Opetaia – considered one of the best in that category – is absent from the list. This discrepancy arises because WBC does not rank champions from other organizations that have prior commitments that clash with WBC's objectives. According to their guidelines, no champion from another boxing body can be placed within WBC's top 10 rankings.
Sulaiman pointed out that adding champions from rival organizations to the WBC rankings could cause issues and be unfair to fighters eligible for WBC titles. However, he mentioned that these champions are included in the rankings for potential unification fights, showing the WBC's willingness to consider such significant matchups.
Despite these clarifications, some voices within the WBC are pushing for a change in this policy. Dean Lohuis, a key figure in the WBC ratings committee, believes that including all top fighters, regardless of their current titles, would boost the credibility and reputation of the WBC's rankings. Lohuis has been advocating for this change for a while and plans to bring it up at the upcoming WBC annual convention with hopes of shifting focus towards merit-based rankings.
The process of ranking by the WBC involves thorough evaluations of fighters' performances, consultations with trainers, promoters, and media personnel, and the creation of detailed documents for review by the rating committee. While this process is meticulous and time-consuming, there are instances where decisions seem to deviate from established rules, like considering a return for Pacquiao who last won a match five years ago and retired four years back after losing to Yordenis Ugas.
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