It’s rare to see a boxer place someone else above himself. But then Oleksandr Usyk is a rare individual. The three-time undisputed champion recently appeared in an interview on Inside the Ring, where he made certain comments regarding Terence Crawford and his long-time friend and training partner, Shakur Stevenson. 

During the interview, host Mike Kellerman highlighted ‘The Cat’ often places Terence Crawford as the pound-for-pound No.1 fighter. And claimed that Crawford would do the same, but put Usyk as the No. 1 pound-for-pound champion. But with Crawford retired, Kellerman asked whether Usyk thinks the spot is his. 

What did Oleksandr Usyk say about Shakur Stevenson? 

“Listen, I [am] very thank[full to] you and people who support me, but I cannot say it’s me,” Oleksandr Usyk said. “No, now maybe it’s Shakur.”

This caught Stevenson’s attention, who quickly responded on X. 

“You’re one of my fav fighters in the sport right now, champ,” Stevenson wrote. “The number 1 spot belongs to you @usykaa 🦾 my time is coming!”

While these three fighters humbly pass the honors to each other, as of now, Ring Magazine has given the honor to Oleksandr Usyk. Shakur Stevenson is also on there, but at the third spot behind Naoya Inoue. Crawford was also on the list, but since his retirement, he has exited the rankings. Still, it’s understandable why there’s so much debate around the subject, especially considering the accomplishments of these fighters. 

Oleksandr Usyk is not only undefeated in professional boxing, but he has also achieved undisputed status at cruiserweight and twice at heavyweight within just 24 professional fights. He is also an Olympic gold medalist, having won at the 2012 Summer Olympics. Notably, he became the first undisputed heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis accomplished the feat in 1999. 

Usyk achieved that status after defeating some of the biggest names in the division, including Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, and Daniel Dubois. Terence Crawford, on the other hand, is also undefeated and has been a champion across multiple weight divisions. He is a three-division undisputed champion and owns a résumé filled with high-level opponents and notable victories.

Comparatively, Shakur Stevenson is also undefeated and has won world titles across four weight classes, but he has yet to achieve undisputed status. However, that is largely due to a lack of opportunities to unify belts with other champions. Regardless, Stevenson clearly still has much to accomplish in the sport, though he appears to be firmly on that trajectory.

Stevenson is coming off a dominant unanimous decision victory over Teofimo Lopez earlier this year. Meanwhile, Usyk’s last appearance in the ring saw him defeat Daniel Dubois in their rematch. He is now scheduled to face Rico Verhoeven on May 23 at the Pyramids of Giza in a high-profile, spectacle-driven voluntary defense of his WBC heavyweight title.

Regardless of who the pound-for-pound No.1 honor belongs to, have you ever wondered how the concept came to be? 

Muhammad Ali idolized the man who inspired the p4p rankings

While many talk about the pound-for-pound king, a very rare group of people know who inspired it. That man was the legendary Sugar Ray Robinson, widely regarded as one of the greatest boxers in history. The term ‘Pound-for-Pound’ dates back to 1906 and was first used in reference to Battling Nelson. 

But it became synonymous with Robinson during the peak of his career. His extraordinary skillset and dominance—highlighted by a remarkable 91-fight winning streak—led many journalists to describe him as the best fighter in the world regardless of weight. Muhammad Ali himself openly admired Robinson’s brilliance inside the ring. 

“That man was beautiful. Timing, speed, reflexes, rhythm, his body. Everything was beautiful,” Ali once said.

Even though Ali called himself the best ever, and everyone agreed, ‘The Greatest’ saw Robinson a step above. 

“But pound-for-pound, I still say Sugar Ray Robinson was the greatest of all time.” 

Moral of the story? Today, who the pound-for-pound great is depends on who you are asking. For Crawford, it’s Usyk. For Usyk, it’s Shakur. And for Stevenson, it’s Usyk. But what about you?