1 Oleksandr Usyk
Not only the best southpaw heavyweight in the world, but arguably the best heavyweight in the world, Usyk has competed just five times as a heavyweight so far yet achieved plenty in those five fights. Most notably he has twice beaten Anthony Joshua.
2 Zhilei Zhang
At the age of 40, Zhang, from China, is something of a late bloomer. He has lost just once, against Filip Hrgovic in a tight one in 2022, and recently stopped Joe Joyce inside six rounds.
3 Luis Ortiz
Famous for twice pushing Deontay Wilder to the wire, only to both times find himself knocked out with the end in sight, Ortiz is an ageing but still effective Cuban operator whose fundamentals are as good as anyone’s in the heavyweight division.
4 Otto Wallin
Swedish heavyweight Wallin is best-known for giving Tyson Fury a surprisingly decent test in 2019. He lasted the distance that night and since then has won five on the bounce.
5 Bakhodir Jalolov
A top amateur, who has an Olympic gold medal and two World Championships gold medals to his name, Jalolov is currently 13-0 as a professional and has secured each of those 13 wins inside schedule.
Zhang lands his southpaw jab against Joyce (Getty Images
6 Zhan Kossobutskiy
Although he lost his last fight, against Efe Ajagba via DQ, Kossobutskiy won 19 in a row previously, with 18 of those wins coming inside the distance. The Kazakh was disqualified against Ajagba in August for repeated low blows.
7 Charles Martin
Remembered by UK fans for folding rather quickly against Anthony Joshua in 2019, Martin has since that night restored some of his reputation with a couple of decent wins, as well as some gutsy performances in losses against the likes of Luis Ortiz and Adam Kownacki.
8 Kevin Lerena
Last year seen dropping Daniel Dubois three times in round one before ultimately being stopped himself in the third, Lerena is a heavy-handed but limited South African. In May, he beat Ryad Merhy via 12-round decision.
9 Lenier Pero
The latest in a long line of Cuban southpaws, Pero is unbeaten at 9-0 (6) and last time out in February defeated another unbeaten fighter, Viktor Vykhryst, via eighth-round stoppage.
10 Kem Ljungquist
Denmark’s Ljungquist stands at 6’6 and boasts a pro record of 15-0 (9). He has yet to fight outside his homeland but did stop Sefer Seferi, a one-time Tyson Fury opponent, inside three rounds in May.
