State of the Boxing Union: The Bantamweights.

Most of the boxing world focuses on the bigger guys, but there is some real talent and great match-ups in the smaller weight classes. Within the next two weeks, two important fights are happening in the bantamweight division. This Friday, on ESPN 2, young gun Silence Mabuza will be taking on the tough Cruz Carbajal, while on May 28, 2005, the division’s boss, Rafael Marquez is set to square off against tough perennial contender Ricardo Vargas. All of these bantamweights are top guys in the division. I felt it was time to give the little guys a look and see where they rank. This division is stout top to bottom and has some great fights that can made. Remember fight fans, I based my ranking on quality of opposition, and activity level. Here we go!

1. Rafael Marquez (33-3-0 with 30 KOs): The IBF bantamweight boss is a true beast as he is arguably the hardest punching fighter pound-for-pound in the sport today. You want to talk about consistency, quality of opposition, and serious power, consider this: since December 2000, Marquez is undefeated in twelve contests, with only two of his opponents hearing the final bell. That winning streak includes victories over Gerardo Espinosa, Mark “Too Sharp” Johnson (twice), Tim Austin (IBF champion and undefeated at the time), Heriberto Ruiz, and Mauricio Pastrana (twice). Marquez is the first and only man to floor and stop the granite chinned Pastrana. “Rafa” is now set to face the tough Ricardo “Chapo” Vargas on May 28, and will be making the fifth defense of his IBF title.

2. Ratanachai Sor Vorapin (63-8-0 with 42 KOs): The twenty-eight-year-old current WBO champion is a throwback in that, in the past five years, he has fought a total of thirty-two bouts. That span includes wins over Danny “Kid Dynamite” Romero, Obote Ameme, Joel Bayua, and Cruz Carbajal (for the WBO title). The problem with the Thai champion is that we rarely get to see his fights because he usually does his work in Asia. Still, this southpaw champion is very experienced, has some power, and solid skills to beat anyone on this list.

3. Cruz “Chucho” Carbajal (25-12-1 with 21 KOs): Losing to the number two guy on this list is not a bad thing as, Vorapin is as solid a fighter as there is in the game today. This tough hombre is the epitome of a mismanaged, unprotected, Mexican fighter. In thirty-eight fights, Carbajal has compiled a who’s who list in the division taking on and losing to Nestor Lopez, Gerardo Martinez, Lehlohonolo Ledwaba, Samson Dutch Boy Gym, Hugo Dianzo, Nestor Garza, and Johnny Bredahl. After learning on the job in taking on the aforementioned fighters, Carbajal showed his natural talent and newfound boxing abilities as, since 2001, he holds an 8-1-0 with 6 KOs record including wins over Alejandro Estrada, Hugo Dianzo, Mauricio Martinez (for the WBO title), Danny “Kid Dynamite” Romero, Steve Dotse, Gerardo Espinoza, and the streaking Jorge Lacierva. Silence Mabuza had better be ready, as this Mexican can do it all in the boxing ring, and has some serious power in both fists.

4. Genaro “Poblanito” Garcia (30-4-0 with 20 KOs): “Poblanito” is the only man on this list to beat Kingpin Rafael Marquez, and he did it by knockout. Garcia is a classic face first brawler that is a tough night for anyone on this list. Garcia does possess decent boxing skills, and has enough power to keep any opponent honest. He is currently on a six-fight winning streak, which includes the likes of Mauricio Martinez, Cuauhtemoc Gomez, Adonis Rivas, and Rodolfo Martinez. As of completion of this list, Garcia was scheduled to fight the always tough Gerardo Espinoza on May 21, 2005.

5. Veeraphol Sahaprom (47-2-2- with 33 KOs): Sahaprom’s nine year, thirty-eight bout win streak came to an end less than one month ago, when then unknown Hozumi Hasegawa, took the WBC title from the Thai champion after fifteen defenses. Still, Sahaprom holds wins over Baby Lora, Jr., Toshiaki Nishioka (twice), Ricardo Barajas, Adan Vargas, Hugo Dianzo, and Julio Cesar Avila. At thirty-six-years-old, it is hard to say how much Sahaprom has left in the tank, but he is still a handful for everyone on the list.

6. Toshiaki Nishioka (25-4-3 with 15 KOs): Nishioka was one of the many unfortunate fighters that were around for Sahaprom’s championship reign of terror. Toshiaki challenged Veeraphol four times, going 0-2-2. Still, by all accounts, all four fights were highly contested, and Nishioka gave solid accounts of himself. He also holds wins over very solid opposition and, now with Sahaprom out of the picture, maybe Nishioka can finally realize his title dreams.

7. Ricardo “Chapo” Vargas (37-10-3 with 12 KOs): Not as talented as Cruz Carbajal, but is much in the same mold as “Chapo” has learned how to fight by fighting. His record is very deceiving and Vargas holds solid wins over contenders like Cuauhtemoc Gomez, Ruben Sanchez Leon, Jhonny Gonzalez (twice), Trinidad Mendoza, Gerson Guerrero, Alex Baba, and Roberto Bonilla. “Chapo” has his hands full later this month as he challenges the king of this division himself, Rafael Marquez. Should he be victorious, Vargas will make a quantum leap on this list. Vargas’ main deficiency is a lack of any real punching power.

8. Jhonny Gonzalez (28-4-0 with 25 KOs): This twenty-three-year-old Mexican national has already amassed thirty-two fights and has improved significantly since his loss to “Chapo” Vargas in 2002. Since that loss, Gonzalez has rolled off fourteen straight wins with thirteen by knockout. That winning streak includes Roger Gonzalez, Alejandro Montiel, Francisco Tejedor, Gabriel Elizondo, Adonis Rivas, and Trinidad Mendoza. Jhonny is still very raw, but is freakishly tall for 118-pounds, and has some serious power. Still, he has many problems with boxers who stick and move. With Golden Boy Promotions behind him, Gonzalez should challenge for a title later this year.

9. Silence “The Real Deal” Mabuza (17-0-0 with 15 KOs): On May 13, 2005, this African knockout artist is going to have to prove his mettle against the number three guy on my list, Cruz Carbajal. Mabuza is still quite untested, but does have some wins over decent guys like Jose Sanjuanelo, Pedro Javier Torres, and Noel Wilders. Still, Carbajal is in a whole other league. We will find out if Silence is “The Real Deal.”

10. Hosumi Hasegawa (17-2-0 with 5 KOs): Referred to as the Asian Pernell Whitaker, Hasegawa came out of nowhere to dethrone Veeraphol Sahaprom. Not much is known about this kid on this side of the pond, but, by all accounts, he seems to have some serious skills and great speed. Who knows how the newly crowned WBC champion will do, but we will keep an eye on him to see.

There you have it fight fans, my two cents on the divisions elite. Any of these pugilists fighting each other should make for incredible fights. Stay tuned as this division is really heating up.

Sergio Martinez can be reached at srg_mrtnz@yahoo.com