So let's start with the current undisputed champ at 135.
Devin Haney:- Clearly if a fighter is undisputed, he is supposed to be the guy in the division in most cases, but that's not the case with Haney in my opinion, at least not yet. But you need to respect Haney, the fact that he became undisputed at such an early age and the way he is carrying about his business and showing intent in fighting opponents like Linares, Kambosos to become undisputed and then defending again against Kambosos, and now fighting Loma in May. He cares about legacy. As things stand I would rank Haney as the best lightweight considering he is undisputed but there are asterisk's on that is he the best? Those asterisks are not a knock on Haney, it's just he is young and doesn't have enough quality names on his resume yet. He can erase some of those asterisks by beating Loma in his next fight and it solidifies his case even more for being called the best lightweight.
Vasiliy Lomachenko:- Well Loma was the boogeyman of the division until Lopez fought him. He was the most avoided fighter in the sport until Lopez took that challenge and beat him. That narrative did change quite a bit for Loma with him dropping in the p4p list almost by everyone. He was clearly on the rise again post-Lopez loss and we saw glimpses of vintage Loma in his performances against Nakatani, Commey but his performance against Ortiz suddenly made him the most called-out fighter with everyone thinking him being washed and he is not the same fighter he once was and they could easily beat him which I think could be foolish and stupid to take so much out of one single performance and to add to that Ortiz was brilliant that night and he does, in my opinion, gives trouble to all the names mentioned in here and might even beat some. Also if you think about the situation in Ukraine and the fact that he is even fighting is crazy. With so much going around in his country, himself fighting for his country in at warzone and constant threats and worry about the safety of his family, The fact that he even fought is crazy and unheard of. I would rank Loma as the 2nd best lightweight currently but If he ends up not just victorious but puts on a master class against Haney in an upcoming fight than it certainly puts everyone in the lightweight division on notice. Also, it makes him the best lightweight and boogeyman of the division again.
Gervonta Tank Davis:- The most explosive and dangerous puncher in the lightweight division but his resume has kind of been disappointing so far. With fans on social media begging for him to fight great names which start with him finally fighting Ryan, hope that fight happens. He has been constantly moving around different weight classes which makes it tough to call him the best at 135, and then you add to that quality of opponents he has faced so far, most of them not even natural lightweights. Other than Issac Cruz, I don't recollect Tank facing any top 10 lightweights in the 28 fights he has had so far, this shows he needs to step up the quality of opponents he has faced so far. He is 28 years old and in his prime, doesn't need to fight guys who anyone else would pick for tune-ups and start fighting for his legacy. Has the talent and power to be the boogeyman of the division but still needs to beat guys like Haney, Shakur, and Loma to become the best lightweight. As things stand I would rank Tank as 3rd best lightweight.
Ryan Garcia:- Ryan has stated his inspiration is Manny Pacquiao and he wants to emulate his career similar Pacquiao's. That's quite an ask and would need a lot of work but considering he is still young and not afraid to take risks which can be seen in the kind of opponents he is willing to face like Campbell previously and Tank next shows his intention of choosing legacy over money. As things stand I would rank Ryan as 4th best lightweight but him beating Tank changes that narrative and put's him ahead of Tank.
Shakur Stevenson:- So what if I say, there is a guy who hasn't even fought at the lightweight division but is considered by many boxing purists and fans as the guy at the lightweight division? You would call me crazy but that's the case with Shakur. That opinion is purely down to an eyeball test, but as Tank mentioned in his recent interview to consider a guy to be a bogeyman when that guy hasn't even fought at this weight class is mad. I agree with Tank in a way that there are guys in this weight class who are probably going to end up at junior welterweights or even welterweights. Those are big punchers who can crack, whether Shakur can even take that power, only time will tell but he has a lot of fans when it comes to boxing circuits who believe in his skills including me which is what makes him rated so highly but he is still young, his resume needs a lot of work at lightweight and has a long way to go to even be in that conversation of being the best. As things stand I would rank Shakur as 5th best lightweight
Have not considered Teofimo for this discussion considering he is campaigning at Junior Welterweight.
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