Former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has been ranked No. 1 in the latest rankings by The Ring magazine, while rival Tyson Fury has been left out after he gave up his belt when he announced his retirement in August.
In September, Joshua was defeated for the second time in a row by Oleksandr Usyk, knocking him out of contention for the heavyweight world title for the first time in several years.
Meanwhile, after successfully defending his title against Dillian Whyte, Fury declared his retirement from the sport, but has now announced he will return in December in Cardiff.
Fury’s on-off retirement from the sport appears to be the reason he has been left out of the Ring Magazine rankings with the likes of Whyte and Luis Ortiz making the top 10 ahead of him in fifth and sixth respectively. Joshua tops the pile having recently fought for the title belt against Usyk, which was put on the line for their rematch after the ‘Gypsy King’ ditched the title.
The Ring Magazine belt is not a typical world title like the WBA, WBC, IBF and WBO, but regarded as a prestigious trophy handed out only when the best fight the best
Although Fury has now confirmed suspicions that he’s not really retired after all, Ring have not yet decided to re-rank him. It appears this will not happen until he fights again on December 3.