A heavyweight at the moment serving a four-year anti-doping ban has been ranked among the many 35 biggest fighters the division has ever produced.
Alexander Povetkin sits at No. 35 on BoxRec’s points-based all-time heavyweight rankings regardless of being ineligible till October 2028.
The previous WBA heavyweight champion was sanctioned after an anti-doping rule violation referring to ostarine from October 2014, with authorities ordering each Povetkin consequence from October 25 of that yr till October 2024 to be disqualified.
These outcomes stay seen on BoxRec, the place the 46-year-old remains to be listed at 36-3-1 and ranked because the thirty fifth biggest heavyweight of all time.
Alexander Povetkin Ranked thirty fifth All-Time
Povetkin’s inclusion raises extra questions on BoxRec’s computerized rankings and the factors system behind them.
The Russian sits above Jerry Quarry, Henry Cooper, Cleveland Williams, Jimmy Ellis, and a number of other different outstanding heavyweights on the all-time record, whereas solely six locations separate Povetkin from Tyson Fury.
The rating comes months after World Boxing Information highlighted one other odd BoxRec consequence involving Rico Verhoeven, who was positioned under a heavyweight with a 0-26 skilled document regardless of the WBA and WBC rating the Dutchman inside their high 15.
BoxRec makes use of a tallied fight-by-fight computerized system reasonably than a panel of voters, however Povetkin’s place is especially placing as a result of his skilled document stays displayed in full regardless of the anti-doping ruling.
The affected fights embrace knockout victories over Carlos Takam, Mike Perez, David Value, and Dillian Whyte, alongside Povetkin’s world title defeat to Anthony Joshua.
These outcomes stay connected to the 36-3-1 document displayed beside his No. 35 place.
BoxRec All-Time Heavyweight Rankings
1. Joe Louis — 66-3-02. Muhammad Ali — 56-5-03. Ezzard Charles — 95-25-14. Gene Tunney — 80-1-35. Lennox Lewis — 41-2-16. Floyd Patterson — 55-8-17. Rocky Marciano — 49-0-08. Wladimir Klitschko — 64-5-09. Jack Dempsey — 58-7-810. Evander Holyfield — 44-10-2
35. Alexander Povetkin — 36-3-1
BoxRec Rankings Produce Extra Anomalies
The difficulty is just not whether or not Povetkin was a high heavyweight in his period. He clearly was, having received Olympic gold, held the WBA title, and fought a number of of the most important names of his technology.
The issue is how a fighter serving a four-year anti-doping ban, with ten years of outcomes ordered disqualified, can nonetheless sit so excessive on an all-time heavyweight record whereas these fights stay connected to his document.
Povetkin is just not the one rating that raises questions in regards to the factors system.
Oleksandr Usyk at the moment sits at No. 15 on BoxRec’s all-time heavyweight record, twenty locations above Povetkin and forward of Joe Frazier, George Foreman, Ingemar Johansson, and Max Schmeling.
But BoxRec ranks Usyk solely twelfth on its present pound-for-pound record, under Jai Opetaia.
It’s astounding {that a} heavyweight may be rated above Frazier, Foreman, Johansson, and Schmeling on a listing of heavyweight greats whereas concurrently sitting under Opetaia pound-for-pound.
Computerized rankings will all the time produce uncommon outcomes, however BoxRec’s is changing into more and more tough to make sense of.
On the identical time, the identical factors system successfully says Usyk is best than George Foreman at heavyweight however not so good as Jai Opetaia pound-for-pound.
Concerning the Writer
Phil Jay is the Editor-in-Chief of World Boxing Information (WBN) and a veteran boxing reporter with 15+ years of expertise. He has interviewed world champions, damaged worldwide exclusives, and reported ringside since 2010. Learn full bio.
