Featherweight
Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling.
Boxing
Professional boxing
History
A featherweight boxer weighs in at a limit of 126 pounds (57 kg). In the early days of the division, this limit fluctuated. The British have generally always recognized the limit at 126 pounds, but in America the weight limit was at first 114 pounds. An early champion, George Dixon, moved the limit to 120 and then 122 pounds. Finally, in 1920 the United States fixed the limit at 126 pounds.
The 1860 fight between Nobby Clark and Jim Elliott is sometimes called the first featherweight championship. However, the division only gained wide acceptance in 1889 after the Ike Weir–Frank Murphy fight (one of the most famous fights of all time).
Since the end of the 2000s and early 2010s the featherweight division is one of the most active in boxing with fighters such as Orlando Salido, Chris John, Juan Manuel López, Celestino Caballero, Yuriorkis Gamboa, Elio Rojas, Israel Vazquez, Cristobal Cruz, Rafael Márquez, Rocky Juarez, Steven Luevano, Naseem Hamed, Marco Antonio Barrera and Manny Pacquiao.
Current world champions
| Sanctioning Body | Reign Began | Champion | Record | Defenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WBA | March 2, 2024 | Raymond Ford | 15–0-1 (8 KO) | 0 |
| WBC | July 9, 2022 | Rey Vargas | 36–1–1 (22 KO) | 1 |
| IBF | December 10, 2022 | Luis Alberto Lopez | 30–2 (17 KO) | 3 |
| WBO | December 9, 2023 | Rafael Espinoza | 24–0 (20 KO) | 0 |
Lineal Champions
1. Billy Murphy (1890-1891) New Zealand
2. Young Griffo (1891) Vacated Australia
3. George Dixon (1891-1897) Canada
4. Solly Smith (1897-1898) USA
5. Dave Sullivan (1898) Ireland
6. George Dixon (1898-1900) (2) Canada
7. Terry McGovern (1900-1901) USA
8. Young Corbett II (1901-1902) Vacated USA
9. Abe Attell (1903-1912) USA
10. Johnny Kilbane (1912-1923) USA
11. Eugene Criqui (1923) France
12. Johnny Dundee (1923 – 1924) Vacated USA
13. Kid Kaplan (1925-1926) Vacated USA
14. Tony Canzoneri (1928) USA
15. Andre Routis (1928-1929) France
16. Bat Battalino (1929-1932) Vacated USA
17. Henry Armstrong (1937-1938) Vacated USA
18. Joey Archibald (1939-1940) USA
19. Harry Jeffra (1940-1941) USA
20. Joey Archibald (1941) USA
21. Chalky Wright (1941-1942) USA
22. Willie Pep (1942-1948) USA
23. Sandy Saddler (1948-1949) USA
24. Willie Pep (1949-1950) (2) USA
25. Sandy Saddler (1950-1957) (2) Retired USA
26. Hogan Bassey (1957-1959) Nigeria
27. Davey Moore (1959-1963) USA
28. Sugar Ramos (1963-1964) Cuba
29. Vicente Saldivar (1964-1967) Retired Mexico
30. Johnny Famechon (1969-1970) Australia
31. Vicente Saldivar (1970) (2) Mexico
32. Kuniaki Shibata (1970-1972) Japan
33. Clemente Sanchez (1972) Mexico
34. Jose Legra (1972-1973) Spain
35. Eder Jofre (1973-1974) Abandoned Championship Brazil
36. Alexis Arguello (1975-1977) Vacated Nicaragua
37. Danny Lopez (1979-1980) USA
38. Salvador Sanchez (1980-1982) Died Mexico
39. Eusebio Pedroza (1983-1986) Panama
40. Barry McGuigan (1986) Ireland
41. Stevie Cruz (1986-1987) USA
42. Antonio Esparragoza (1987-1991) Venezuela
43. Yong-Kyun Park (1991-1993) South Korea
44. Eloy Rojas (1993-1996) Venezuela
45. Wilfredo Vazquez (1996-1998) Puerto Rico
46. Naseem Hamed (1998 - 2001) UK
47. Marco Antonio Barerra (2001-2003) Mexico
48. Manny Pacquiao (2003-2005) Vacated Philippines
Current The Ring world rankings
As of October 14, 2023.
Keys:
- C Current The Ring world champion
| Rank | Name | Record | Title(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | vacant | ||
| 1 | Leigh Wood | 28–3 (17 KO) | WBA |
| 2 | Luis Alberto Lopez | 29–2 (16 KO) | IBF |
| 3 | Rey Vargas | 36–1 (22 KO) | WBC |
| 4 | Brandon Figueroa | 24–1–1 (18 KO) | |
| 5 | Rafael Espinoza | 24–0 (20 KO) | WBO |
| 6 | Robeisy Ramírez | 13–2 (8 KO) | |
| 7 | Mauricio Lara | 26–3–1 (19 KO) | |
| 8 | Josh Warrington | 31–3–1 (8 KO) | |
| 9 | Reiya Abe | 25–3–1 (10 KO) | |
| 10 | Ruben Villa | 21–1 (7 KO) |
Longest reigning world featherweight champions
Below is a list of longest reigning featherweight 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. | Johnny Kilbane | 11 years, 3 months, 24 days | World/NYSAC | 4 | 2 | |
| 2. | Chris John | 10 years, 1 month, 5 days | WBA | 18 | 16 | |
| 3. | Abe Attell | 8 years, 5 months, 19 days | World | 22 | 14 | |
| 4. | Eusebio Pedroza | 7 years, 1 month, 23 days | WBA | 19 | 18 | |
| 5. | Gary Russell, Jr. | 6 years, 9 month, 25 days | WBC | 5 | 5 | |
| 6. | Sandy Saddler | 6 years, 4 months, 13 days | World | 4 | 3 | |
| 7. | Léo Santa Cruz | 5 years, 10 months, 13 days | WBA (Super) | 5 | 5 | |
| 8. | Naseem Hamed | 4 years, 11 months, 20 days | WBO | 15 | 15 | |
| 9. | George Dixon | 4 years, 5 months | World | 4 | 4 | |
| 10. | Antonio Esparragoza | 4 years, 27 days | WBA | 7 | 7 | |
| 11. | Davey Moore | 4 years, 3 days | World | 5 | 4 |
Amateur boxing
In amateur boxing, the weight limit is 54 to 57 kilograms (119 to 126 lb) for women and 52 to 57 kilograms (115 to 126 lb) for men. To make room for the introduction of women's boxing to the Olympics in 2012, the men's featherweight class was dropped down one kilogram and became bantamweight. Following further adjustments, the 2020 Olympics will again feature men's featherweight and, for the first time, women's featherweight.
Olympic champions
Men’s
- 1904 –
Oliver Kirk (USA) - 1908 –
Richard Gunn (GBR) - 1920 –
Paul Fritsch (FRA) - 1924 –
Jackie Fields (USA) - 1928 –
Bep van Klaveren (NED) - 1932 –
Carmelo Robledo (ARG) - 1936 – Oscar Casanovas (ARG)
- 1948 –
Ernesto Formenti (ITA) - 1952 –
Jan Zachara (TCH) - 1956 –
Vladimir Safronov (URS) - 1960 – Francesco Musso (ITA)
- 1964 – Stanislav Stepashkin (URS)
- 1968 –
Antonio Roldán (MEX) - 1972 – Boris Kuznetsov (URS)
- 1976 –
Ángel Herrera (CUB) - 1980 –
Rudi Fink (GDR) - 1984 –
Meldrick Taylor (USA) - 1988 – Giovanni Parisi (ITA)
- 1992 –
Andreas Tews (GER) - 1996 –
Somluck Kamsing (THA) - 2000 –
Bekzat Sattarkhanov (KAZ) - 2004 –
Alexei Tichtchenko (RUS) - 2008 –
Vasiliy Lomachenko (UKR) - 2020 –
Albert Batyrgaziev (ROC)
Pan American Champions
- 1951 –
Francisco Núñez (ARG) - 1955 – Oswaldo Cañete (ARG)
- 1959 – Carlos Aro (ARG)
- 1963 –
Rosemiro Mateus (BRA) - 1967 – Miguel García (ARG)
- 1971 –
Juan García (MEX) - 1975 –
Dave Armstrong (United States) - 1979 – Bernard Taylor (United States)
- 1983 –
Adolfo Horta (CUB) - 1987 – Kelcie Banks (United States)
- 1991 – Arnaldo Mesa (CUB)
- 1995 – Arnaldo Mesa (CUB)
- 1999 – Yudel Johnson (CUB)
- 2003 –
Likar Ramos Concha (COL) - 2007 – Idel Torriente (CUB)
Notable featherweights
- Everett Backer “Baker”
- Alexis Argüello
- Henry Armstrong
- Abe Attell
- Marco Antonio Barrera
- Kid Chocolate
- Luisito Espinosa
- Wilfredo Gómez
- Wilfredo Vázquez
- Naseem Hamed
- Paul Ingle
- Chris 'The Dragon' John
- Tom "Boom Boom" Johnson
- Kevin Kelley
- Derrick Gainer
- Kina Malpartida
- Juan Manuel Márquez
- Barry McGuigan
- Érik Morales
- Azumah Nelson
- Manny Pacquiao
- Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire
- Tommy Paul
- Willie Pep
- Sandy Saddler
- Calvin Grove
- Vicente Saldivar
- Salvador Sánchez
- Orlando Salido
- Miguel Ángel García
- Juan Manuel López
- Yuriorkis Gamboa
- Jeff Fenech
- Vasiliy Lomachenko
Kickboxing
In kickboxing, a featherweight fighter generally weighs between 55 and 59 kg (121 and 130 lb). However, some governing bodies have slightly different classes. For example, the International Kickboxing Federation (IKF) featherweight division (professional and amateur) is between 122.1–127 lb (55.4–57.6 kg).
In Glory promotion, a featherweight division is up to 65 kg (143 lb).
In Bellator Kickboxing promotion, a featherweight division is up to 66 kg (146 lb).
In ONE Championship, the featherweight division limit is 70.3 kg (155 lb).
Bare-knuckle boxing
The limit for featherweight generally differs among promotions in bare-knuckle boxing:
- In Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, the featherweight division has an upper limit of 145 lb (66 kg).
- In BKB™, the featherweight division has an upper limit of 76 kg (168 lb).
Lethwei
International Lethwei Federation Japan has a featherweight division with an upper limit of 65 kg (143 lb). In International Lethwei Federation Japan, Thar A Thae Ta Pwint is the Featherweight Champion.
In World Lethwei Championship, the featherweight division has an upper limit of 57 kg (126 lb).
Mixed Martial Arts
In MMA, within the UFC company and most other MMA companies the featherweight range is from 136 to 145 lb (62 to 66 kg).
Current champions
These tables were last updated in February 2024.
Men:
| Organization | Reign Began | Champion | Record | Defenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UFC | February 17, 2024 |  Ilia Topuria | 15–0 (5KO 8SUB) | 0 |
| Bellator MMA | April 15, 2022 |  Patrício Pitbull | 33–5 (11KO 12SUB) | 1 |
| ONE Championship | August 26, 2022 |  Tang Kai | 15–2 (12KO 0SUB) | 0 |
| ACA | July 22, 2022 |  Alikhan Suleymanov | 15–2 (1KO 10SUB) | 0 |
| Cage Warriors | November 4, 2022 |  Paul Hughes | 9–1 (3KO 3SUB) | 0 |
| M-1 Global |  Vacant | |||
| AMC Fight Nights | October 14, 2022 | Gleb Khabibulin | 7–1–2 (4KO 3SUB) | 0 |
| Brave Combat Federation | October 22, 2022 | Roman Bogatov | 13–1 (1KO 5SUB) | 0 |
| Titan FC | August 6, 2021 |  Ali al-Qaisi | 12–5 (2KO 4SUB) | 0 |
| Legacy Fighting Alliance | Vacant | |||
| Road FC | December 18, 2022 |  Hae Jin Park | 10–2 (1KO 4SUB) | 0 |
| KSW | December 18, 2021 |  Salahdine Parnasse | 17–1–1 (2KO 6SUB) | 1 |
Women:
| Organization | Reign Began | Champion | Record | Defenses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bellator MMA | January 25, 2020 | Cris Cyborg | 29–2 (1) (20KO 1SUB) | 4 |
| UFC | December 29, 2018 | Amanda Nunes | 21–5 (13KO 3SUB) | 2 |
| Invicta FC | Vacant |
See also
References
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