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Middleweight is aweight class incombat sports.
Inprofessional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above 154 lb (70 kg) and up to 160 lb (73 kg).
Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s. In thebare-knuckle era, the first middleweight championship fight was betweenTom Chandler andDooney Harris in 1867. Chandler won, becoming known as the American middleweight champion. The first middleweight fight with glovesmay have been betweenGeorge Fulljames andJack (Nonpareil) Dempsey (no relation to the more famousheavyweightJack Dempsey).
| Sanctioning Body | Reign Began | Champion | Record | Defenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WBA | March 9, 2023 | Erislandy Lara | 31–3–3 (19 KO) | 2 |
| WBC | May 7, 2024 | Carlos Adames | 24–1–1 (18 KO) | 2 |
| IBF | October 14, 2023 | Janibek Alimkhanuly | 17–0 (12 KO) | 2 |
| WBO | August 26, 2022 | Janibek Alimkhanuly[1] | 17–0 (12 KO) | 4 |
As of August 11, 2025.[2]
Keys:
| Rank | Name | Record | Title(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | vacant | ||
| 1 | Janibek Alimkhanuly | 17–0 (12 KO) | WBO,IBF |
| 2 | Carlos Adames | 24–1–1 (18 KO) | WBC |
| 3 | Erislandy Lara | 31–3–3 (19 KO) | WBA |
| 4 | Chris Eubank Jr. | 35–3 (25 KO) | |
| 5 | Yoenlis Hernández | 8–0 (7 KO) | |
| 6 | Troy Isley | 15–0 (5 KO) | |
| 7 | Etinosa Oliha | 21–0 (9 KO) | |
| 8 | Aaron McKenna | 20–0 (10 KO) | |
| 9 | Austin Williams | 19–1 (13 KO) | |
| 10 | Denzel Bentley | 21–3–1 (17 KO) |
As of November 27, 2025.[3]
| Rank | Name | Record | Points | Title(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gennady Golovkin | 42–2–1 (37 KO) | 687.5 | |
| 2 | Jermall Charlo | 34–0 (23 KO) | 109.1 | |
| 3 | Erislandy Lara | 31–3–3 (19 KO) | 95.18 | WBA |
| 4 | Chris Eubank Jr. | 32–2 (23 KO) | 95.07 | |
| 5 | Jaime Munguía | 38–0 (30 KO) | 91.67 | |
| 6 | Michael Zerafa | 30–4 (19 KO) | 54.77 | |
| 7 | Carlos Adames | 24–1 (18 KO) | 44.18 | |
| 8 | Sergiy Derevyanchenko | 13–4 (10 KO) | 43.24 | |
| 9 | Janibek Alimkhanuly | 17–0 (12 KO) | 30.81 | WBOIBF |
| 10 | Ryōta Murata | 16–3 (13 KO) | 28.35 |
Below is a list oflongest reigning middleweight champions in boxing measured by the individual's longest reign. Career total time as champion (for multiple time champions) isnot counted.
| Rank | Name | Title Reign | Title Recognition | Successful Defenses | Beaten opponents | Fights |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Bernard Hopkins | 10 years, 2 months, 18 days | IBF, WBA, WBC, WBO | 20 | 17 | [4] |
| 2. | Tommy Ryan | 8 years, 7 months, 4 days | World | 6 | 6 | [5][6] |
| 3. | Gennady Golovkin | 8 years, 1 months, 1 day | WBA (Super), IBF, WBC | 18 | 14 | [7] |
| 4. | Tony Zale | 6 years, 11 months, 24 days | NBA (current WBA) | 4 | 4 | [8] |
| 5. | Carlos Monzón | 6 years, 9 months, 9 days | WBA, WBC | 14 | 11 | [9][10] |
| 6. | Marvelous Marvin Hagler | 6 years, 7 months, 10 days | WBC, WBA, IBF | 12 | 10 | [11] |
| 7. | Nonpareil Jack Dempsey | 6 years, 6 months, 15 days | World | 2 | 2 | [12] |
| 8. | Felix Sturm | 5 years, 4 months, 4 days | WBA | 12 | 10 | |
| 9. | Jermall Charlo | 6 years, 4 months, 4 weeks and 1 day | WBC | 4 | 4 | [13] |
| 10. | Demetrius Andrade | 3 years, 10 month, 12 days | WBO | 5 | 5 | [14] |
| 11. | Bob Fitzsimmons | 3 years, 8 months, 12 days | World | 1 | 1 | [15][16] |
| 12. | Arthur Abraham | 3 years, 7 months, 2 days | IBF | 10 | 10 | [17] |
Charles Mayer (USA)
John Douglas (GBR) Harry Mallin (GBR) Harry Mallin (GBR)
Piero Toscani (ITA)
Carmen Barth (USA)
Jean Despeaux (FRA)
László Papp (HUN) Floyd Patterson (USA)
Gennadiy Shatkov (URS)
Eddie Crook, Jr. (USA) Valeriy Popenchenko (URS) Chris Finnegan (GBR) Vyacheslav Lemeshev (URS) Michael Spinks (USA)
José Gómez Mustelier (CUB)
Shin Joon-Sup (KOR)
Henry Maske (GDR) Ariel Hernández (CUB) Ariel Hernández (CUB) Jorge Gutiérrez (CUB)
Gaydarbek Gaydarbekov (RUS) James DeGale (GBR)
Ryota Murata (JPN) Arlen López (CUB)
Hebert Conceição (BRA)The limit for middleweight generally differs among promotions in bare-knuckle boxing:
TheWorld Lethwei Championship recognizes the middleweight division with an upper limit of 75 kg (165 lb). InWorld Lethwei Championship,Naimjon Tuhtaboyev is the Middleweight Champion.
InMMA, the middleweight division is from 171 lb (77.5 kg) to 185 lb (84 kg).
Anderson Silva is considered to be the greatest MiddleweightMMA fighter of all time.[19]
| Category | Men's | Women's | Competitions | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middleweight | 78–84 kg | 67–72 kg | World Championships, Continental Championships,Asian Games | since 1999 |
| Middleweight | 76–83 kg | 65–70 kg | World Championships, Continental Championships,Asian Games | until 1998 |
| Middleweight | 68–80 kg | 57–67 kg | Olympic Games,Pan Am Games,All-Africa Games |