Boxing’s heavyweight division is in rude health right now with Oleksandr Usyk at the top of the tree and a host of contenders aiming to take him down.
Usyk now holds all of the marbles as undisputed champion for the second time in just 14 months, following that brilliant Wembley demolition job on Britain’s Daniel Dubois.
The Ukrainian genius (24-0 with 15 wins inside distance) has still to be bested in the professional ranks, and of course he holds the hallowed green and gold WBC belt – along with the IBF, WBO, WBA, Ring magazine and lineal titles.
The WBC has now released its latest rankings for August 2025, with those contenders lining up for a potential future shot at Oleksandr. The mandatory contender right now is unbeaten German star Agit Kabayel (26-0 with 18 wins inside distance), who has shot into the title picture with brilliant wins over Arslanbek Makhmudov, Frank Sanchez and Zhilei Zhang.
Where are Joshua and Itauma?
As for the fighters ranked 1-15 below him, they are headed by British stars Lawrence Okolie (22-1), deposed IBF king Dubois (22-3) and two-time heavyweight champ Anthony Joshua (28-4).
Nigerian star Efe Ajagba sits at number 4 in the latest rankings, ahead of Congolese giant Martin Bakole, Croat Filip Hrgovic and the aforementioned Sanchez (Cuba).
Two-time Olympic king Bakhodir Jalolov is expected to be a major player in the division after going all in on the pro game following Paris 2024, and he is number 8, while Chinese giant Zhang and US sensation Richard Torrez Jr round out the top 10.
British sensation Moses Itauma – who is still just 20 years of age – is number 11 ahead of his first test at elite level vs Dillian Whyte in Riyadh next Saturday (August 16), while big-punching former WBC king Deontay Wilder is at 12.
The top 15 are completed by British vet Dereck Chisora, American prodigy Jared Anderson and talented Justis Huni.
Latest WBC Rankings
The latest WBC rankings in the heavyweight division in August 2025 look like this:
| Ranking | Fighter | Country |
| C | Oleksandr Usyk | Ukraine |
| IC | Agit Kabayel | Germany |
| 1 | Lawrence Okolie | Great Britain |
| 2 | Daniel Dubois | Great Britain |
| 3 | Anthony Joshua | Great Britain |
| 4 | Efe Ajagba | Nigeria |
| 5 | Martin Bakole | Congo |
| 6 | Filip Hrgovic | Croatia |
| 7 | Frank Sanchez | Cuba |
| 8 | Bakhodir Jalolov | Uzbekistan |
| 9 | Zhilei Zhang | China |
| 10 | Richard Torrez Jr | United States |
| 11 | Moses Itauma | Great Britain |
| 12 | Deontay Wilder | United States |
| 13 | Dereck Chisora | Great Britain |
| 14 | Jared Anderson | United States |
| 15 | Justis Huni | Australia |
Who will Usyk fight next?
Good question, and there is no definitive answer just yet. The next governing body in the rotation for a mandatory defence is the WBO, with Joseph Parker occupying the spot as interim champion and mandatory contender.
Usyk and Parker have been ordered to make a fight, but the Saudi power brokers who are pumping huge sums of cash into the sport do not appear to be too interested.
So there is absolutely a scenario where Usyk says ‘thanks, but no thanks’ to Parker and vacates the WBO strap to move on to a different fight instead (potentially against Tyson Fury, or maybe even Moses Itauma or Jake Paul).
Either way, it appears very likely that the WBC belt will again be on the line the next time Usyk steps into a professional ring.
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