Light heavyweight
Weight class used in boxing, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts
Light heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports.
01Boxing
Professional
In professional boxing, the division is above 168 pounds (76 kg) and up to 175 pounds (79 kg), falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight.
The light heavyweight class has produced some of boxing's greatest champions: Bernard Hopkins (who, upon becoming champion, broke the record for oldest man to win a world title), Tommy Loughran, Billy Conn, Joey Maxim, Archie Moore, Michael Moorer, Bob Foster, Ann Wolfe, Michael Spinks, Dariusz Michalczewski, Roy Jones Jr., Joe Calzaghe, Sergey Kovalev, Zsolt Erdei, Dmitry Bivol, & Artur Beterbiev.
Many light heavyweight champions unsuccessfully challenged for the heavyweight crown until Michael Spinks became the first reigning light heavyweight champion to win the heavyweight championship. Bob Fitzsimmons captured the light heavyweight championship after losing his heavyweight championship. Two all-time great heavyweight champions, Ezzard Charles and Floyd Patterson, started out as light heavyweights. Charles defeated Archie Moore and Joey Maxim several times in non-title bouts before becoming heavyweight champion and Patterson lost an eight-round decision to Joey Maxim before becoming heavyweight champion himself. Evander Holyfield successfully moved up from the light heavyweight division to the cruiserweight division and eventually the heavyweight division and became undisputed champion of the latter two.
Current world champions
| Sanctioning body | Reign began | Champion | Record | Defenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WBA | February 22, 2025 | Dmitry Bivol | 25-1 (12 KO) | 1 |
| WBC | April 7, 2025 | David Benavidez | 31-0 (25 KO) | 1 |
| IBF | February 22, 2025 | Dmitry Bivol | 25-1 (12 KO) | 1 |
| WBO | February 22, 2025 | Dmitry Bivol | 25-1 (12 KO) | 0 |
Current world rankings
The Ring
As of July 2, 2026.
Keys:
- C Current The Ring world champion
| Rank | Name | Record (W-L-D) | Title(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | Dmitry Bivol | 25-1 (12 KO) | WBA, IBF, WBO |
| 1 | David Benavidez | 32-0 (26 KO) | WBC, WBA (Regular) |
| 2 | Calum Smith | 31-2 (22 KO) | WBO (Interim) |
| 3 | Anthony Yarde | 27-4 (24 KO) | |
| 4 | Imam Khataev | 12-1 (11 KO) | |
| 5 | Joshua Buatsi | 20-1 (13 KO) | |
| 6 | Willy Hutchinson | 20-2 (14 KO) | |
| 7 | Najee Lopez | 16-0 (13 KO) | |
| 8 | Lerrone Richards | 19-2 (4 KO) | |
| 9 | Albert Ramirez | 23-0 (19 KO) | WBA (Interim) |
| 10 | Ben Whittaker | 12-0-1 (9 KO) |
BoxRec
As of 2 July 2026
| Rank | Name | Record (W-L-D) | Title(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dmitry Bivol | 25-1 (12 KO) | WBA, IBF, WBO, The Ring |
| 2 | Joshua Buatsi | 20-1 (13 KO) | |
| 3 | Imam Khataev | 12-1 (11 KO) | |
| 4 | Ali Izmailov | 15-0 (13 KO) | |
| 5 | Willy Hutchinson | 20-2 (14 KO) | |
| 6 | Najee Lopez | 16-0 (13 KO) | |
| 7 | Albert Ramirez | 23-0 (19 KO) | WBA (Interim) |
| 8 | Umar Dzambekov | 14-0 (10 KO) | |
| 9 | Atif Oberlton | 16-0 (14 KO) | |
| 10 | Ben Whittaker | 12-0-1 (9 KO) |
Longest reigning world light heavyweight champions
Below is a list of longest reigning light heavyweight champions in boxing measured by the individual's longest reign. Career total time as champion (for multiple time champions) does not apply.
| Name | Title reign | Title recognition | Successful defenses | Beaten opponents | Fights | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Archie Moore | 9 years, 4 months, 24 days | NYSAC, NBA | 9 | 7 | |
| 2. | Dariusz Michalczewski | 9 years, 1 months, 8 days | IBF, WBA, WBO | 23 | 20 | |
| 3. | Artur Beterbiev | 7 years, 3 months, 1 week and 5 days | IBF, WBC, WBO, WBA | 9 | 9 | |
| 4. | Gus Lesnevich | 7 years, 2 months, 2 days | NYSAC, NBA | 5 | 3 | |
| 5. | Dmitry Bivol | 7 years, 3 weeks and 3 days | IBF, WBC, WBO, WBA | 12 | 12 | |
| 6. | Bob Foster | 6 years, 0 months, 23 days | WBC, WBA | 14 | 13 | |
| 7. | Zsolt Erdei | 5 years, 9 months, 27 days | WBO | 11 | 10 | |
| 8. | Adonis Stevenson | 5 years, 5 months, 24 days | WBC | 9 | 9 | |
| 9. | Charles Williams | 5 years, 4 months, 21 days | IBF | 8 | 8 | |
| 10. | Roy Jones Jr. | 5 years, 2 months, 25 days | WBC, IBF, WBA (Super) | 11 | 11 | |
| 11. | Virgil Hill | 4 years, 9 months, 15 days | WBA | 10 | 10 | |
| 12. | Maxie Rosenbloom | 4 years, 4 months, 22 days | NYSAC, NBA | 7 | 6 | |
| 13. | Michael Spinks | 4 years, 2 months, 3 days | IBF, WBA, WBC | 10 | 10 | |
| 14. | Battling Levinsky | 3 years, 11 months, 19 days | World | 1 | 1 | |
| 15. | Victor Galindez | 3 years, 9 months, 8 days | WBA | 10 | 7 |
- Active title reign
- Reign has ended
Amateur
In amateur boxing, light heavyweight is a weight division above 165 pounds (75 kg) and up to 178 pounds (81 kg), falling between middleweight and heavyweight.
Olympic champions
- 1920 , Eddie Eagan (USA)
- 1924 , Harry Mitchell (GBR)
- 1928 , Víctor Avendaño (ARG)
- 1932 , David Carstens (RSA)
- 1936 , Roger Michelot (FRA)
- 1948 , George Hunter (RSA)
- 1952 , Norvel Lee (USA)
- 1956 , James Boyd (USA)
- 1960 , Muhammad Ali (USA)
- 1964 , Cosimo Pinto (ITA)
- 1968 , Danas Pozniakas (URS)
- 1972 , Mate Parlov (YUG)
- 1976 , Leon Spinks (USA)
- 1980 , Slobodan Kacar (YUG)
- 1984 , Anton Josipović (YUG)
- 1988 , Andrew Maynard (USA)
- 1992 , Torsten May (GER)
- 1996 , Vassiliy Jirov (KAZ)
- 2000 , Aleksandr Lebziak (RUS)
- 2004 , Andre Ward (USA)
- 2008 , Zhang Xiaoping (CHN)
- 2012 , Egor Mekhontsev (RUS)
- 2016 , Julio César La Cruz (CUB)
- 2020 , Arlen López (CUB)
02Kickboxing
- In kickboxing, a light heavyweight fighter generally weighs between 77 kg (171 lb) and 95 kg (210 lb).
- In International Kickboxing Federation (IKF), a light heavyweight division is 172.1, 179 lb (78.3, 81.4 kg).
- In Glory promotion, a light heavyweight division is up to 95 kg (209 lb).
- In Bellator Kickboxing promotion, a light heavyweight division is up to 95 kg (209 lb).
- In ONE Championship, the light heavyweight division is up to 102.1 kg (225 lb).
03Bare-knuckle boxing
The limit of light heavyweight generally differs among promotions in bare-knuckle boxing:
- In Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, the light heavyweight division has an upper limit of 185 lb (84 kg).
- In BKB™, the light heavyweight division has an upper limit of 95 kg (209 lb).
04Mixed martial arts
In MMA, the light heavyweight division is from 186 lb (84 kg) to 205 lb (93 kg).
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Light heavyweight”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
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