Quote Originally Posted by p4pking View Post
Nice work if it's yours or whoevers, but why is Andre Ward listed as light heavyweight champion? He has never fought anyone in that division. I guess if you have Alvarez there as a middleweight you've got to be consistent There HAS to be a certain point where these alphabet gangs are going to strip these guys and just declare a vacant title bout between the best guys who actually fight there.
Hi thanks for the interest, I get asked this question regularly.

Under my Ratings Policy any time a Champion weighs in under his Championship weight and fights in a twelve round bout then the Championship will be on the line.

Here are a few examples of dual-championship fights from history:

World Lightweight and World Junior Welterweight Titles- World Lightweight Champion Tony Canzoneri/World Junior Welterweight Champion Jackie "Kid" Berg- Limit- 135; Canzoneri weighed in at 132; Berg at 134 1/4; Winner- Canzoneri KO-3

World Lightweight and World Junior welterweight Titles- Champion Tony Canzoneri/Challenger Jackie "Kid" Berg- Limit- 135; (weights not available); Winner- Canzoneri UD 15

World Lightweight and World Junior Welterweight Titles- Champion Tony Canzoneri/Challenger Kid Chocolate- Limit- *135; (weights not available); Winner- Canzoneri SD 15 (*- Note: Had Canzoneri made the 130-pound limit, which he didn't, he would have been awarded Kid Chocolate's World Junior Lightweight title. That would have made Canzoneri, a former World Featherweight champion, boxing's first four-divisional champion.)

World Lightweight and World Junior Welterweight Titles- Champion Tony Canzoneri/Challenger Barney Ross- Limit- 135; Canzoneri weighed in at 133 1/2; Ross at 134 3/4; Winner- Ross MD 10

World Lightweight and World Junior Welterweight Titles- Champion Barney Ross/Challenger Tony Canzoneri- Limit- 135; Ross weighed in at 135; Canzoneri at 133 1/2; Winner- Ross SD 15

World Lightweight and World Welterweight Titles- Champion Henry Armstrong/Challenger Lew Feldman- Limit- 135; Armstrong weighed in at 135; Feldman at 134; Winner- Armstrong KO-1

An interesting fact, Armstrong should have lost the lightweight and welterweight championships to Lou Ambers in August 1939, both weighed in under 135. The officiating was horrible but we have to respect the official decision even if we don't agree with it.

You can add in Leonard/ LaLonde, the Mayweather/ Maidana fights and now Mayweather/ Pacquiao.

My policy is pretty clear; if a champion fights under his championship weight in a twelve round bout then the title is on the line. When you start picking and choosing and muddying the waters it becomes no better than the alphabet boys. Or you get situations like Judah or Peterson holding belts they should have lost.

He won his Championship in the ring under the required weight limit (according to the commission rules a contest with fighters weighing between 161 lbs – 175 lbs has a maximum weight difference allowance of 12 pounds), both Dawson and Ward weighted in at 168. The Rodriguez and Smith fights also qualified as defences.

It's not very common these days for a number of reasons. For example you have to have two champions from different divisions willing to face each other, with the higher weight holder willing to weigh under the lighter division limit. Normally a fighter wants every advantage possible so dual weight championship fights are rare.

These examples were to show that even though Dawson was not at his championship weight his title was on the line.

Also the Light-heavy linage is pretty messy but you could make a case that it leads back to Ward.

Michalczewski-Gonzalez-Erdei-Grachev-Rodriguez-Ward.

I consider Ward the rightful Light-Heavyweight Champion.