The Ring first introduced its divisional ratings in 1925. A century later, it’s no exaggeration to claim that these independent rankings are the most respected and talked-about in world boxing.

The Ring Ratings Panel is made up of a dozen experts from around the world. Opinions are shared, debate takes place, and the final decision on who should be ranked where is decided democratically every week. It sounds easy, but this can be an arduous and time-consuming process.

Here I will be going through each division in reverse order, working my way up from strawweight to heavyweight, looking at each ranked fighter's respective achievements and gazing into my crystal ball to determine what might lie ahead.

Next up is super middleweight (168-pounds), which has a new king with a very good supporting cast of fighters in the top 10 as well as some just outside waiting for their opportunity. As always, please enjoy the debate and respect other people's opinions.

RECORD: (42-0, 31 KOs)

THE PAST: Crawford started his pro career away from the bright lights, but soon enough the Nebraska native's big break came when stepping in on three days' notice to whitewash Amir Khan's former conqueror Briedis Prescott with a 10-round points win.

The super talented American switch-hitter went from strength-to-strength winning titles at 135, 140 and 147 (Ring/ undisputed at 140 and 147). The 38-year-old notably stopped Khan, Kell Brook, Shawn Porter and David Avanesyan before a dominant ninth-round win over longtime rival Errol Spence Jr in July 2023. He became a four-weight world champion by outpointing the unbeaten WBA titleholder Israil Madrimov (UD 12) last August and showed his greatness further, jumping up to super middleweight and besting Canelo Alvarez over 12 rounds to capture the Ring and undisputed 168-pound titles on September 13.

THE FUTURE: He's enjoying a victory lap before deciding what's next. Does he stay at 168, drop to 160, or simply walk away?

RECORD: (63-2-2, 39 KOs)

THE PAST: Canelo boasts a cache of outstanding wins over Shane Mosley (UD 12), Austin Trout (UD 12), Erislandy Lara (SD 12), Miguel Cotto (UD 12), Gennadiy Golovkin (MD 12), Daniel Jacobs (UD 12), Sergey Kovalev (KO 11), Callum Smith (UD 12), Billy Joe Saunders (RTD 8) and Caleb Plant (TKO 11). The 35-year-old is a modern day great, who captured world titles from junior middleweight to light heavyweight.

The Mexican superstar was upset by Dmitry Bivol (UD 12) in May 2022 but bounced back with dominant decision wins including a Golovkin trilogy (UD12), claiming Mexican bragging rights against Jaime Munguia and cruising past Edgar Berlanga.

Though not what he once was, it was still going to take a special performance to beat him and that's exactly what we saw from Crawford, winning a 12-round unanimous decision last month.

THE FUTURE: It remains early days post-defeat, especially with the latest news regarding his impending elbow surgery but with generational wealth in the bank and his status settled as one of his generation's very best, will he look to continue after recovery or retire?

RECORD: 14-0 (13 KOs)

THE PAST: Iglesias was a talented amateur in his native Cuba before turning professional in Germany in 2019. In just his sixth fight, he dominated faded former two-time world title challenger Isaac Chilemba (UD 12).

The 27-year-old southpaw caught the eye stopping Ezequiel Maderna (KO 1), Andrii Velikovskyi (TKO 10) and Artur Reis (KO 4) before scoring first round knockouts of respected Marcelo Coceres last March and Evgeny Shvendenko three months later.

Sena Agbeko survived the opening round but was quickly vanquished in round two of their fight last August. He was too much for previously unbeaten Petro Ivanov (TKO 5) last November and became the IBF mandatory, dominating Vladimir Shishkin (TKO 8) on Sept. 4.

THE FUTURE: In a holding pattern waiting to see if Crawford is staying at 168-pounds or will vacate and allow him an opportunity to fight for the vacant IBF championship.

RECORD: 29-0-1 (24 KOs)

THE PAST: Mbilli represented France at the 2016 Olympics, losing to eventual gold medalist Arlen Lopez in the quarter-finals. Moving to Canada, where he is now a citizen, he's steadily worked his way up the rankings from emerging prospect to bonafide contender.

The 30-year-old all-action fighter scored an eye-catching knockout over former title challenger Nadjib Mohammedi (KO 5) in March 2022, engaged in a thrill-a-minute war with Carlos Gongora (UD 10) the following March before stopping Rohan Murdock after six rounds last January. Seven months later, he bested former three-time world title challenger Sergiy Derevychenko over 10 rounds.

An injury against the aforementioned Ukrainian saw him spend time on the sidelines before returning to win the WBC interim title with a first-round knockout of Maciej Sulecki in June.

A quick turnaround saw him appear on the Canelo-Crawford undercard, defending his belt in a 10-round war of attrition ruled a split draw against Lester Martinez.

THE FUTURE: The WBC board of governors voted in favor of an immediate Martinez rematch but whether that is next, remains to be seen.

RECORD: 19-0-1 (16 KOs)

THE PAST: Martinez was a decorated amateur, who represented Guatemala on the world stage. He turned professional with a second-round stoppage over faded former two-weight titleholder Ricardo Mayorga in April 2019.

Since then, the 29-year-old has remained busy beating the likes of teak tough Rodolfo Gomez Jr. (UD 10), Isaiah Steen (TKO 8) and Carlos Gongora (UD 10). He impressively beat Joeshon James (KO 4) in March and put up a good effort against Mbilli (D10) on Sept. 13.

THE FUTURE: Having announced himself on the big stage against Mbilli, he could get a rematch or face one of the world's other top 168-pound contenders.

RECORD: 24-0 (18 KOs)

THE PAST: Pacheco was an outstanding young amateur, who turned professional at just 17 and has since moved through the ranking on big undercards featuring Anthony Joshua and Canelo Alvarez while gradually stepping up in level.

The tall 24-year-old has beaten the likes of experienced former title challenger Marcelo Coceres (KO 9) in November 2023, awkward Shawn McCalman (UD 10) last April, former title challenger Maciej Sulecki (KO 6) last August. He's remained busy this year besting previously-unbeaten Steven Nelson (UD 12) in January and McCumby (UD 12) on July 19.

THE FUTURE: He'll look to stay busy on Matchroom cards, waiting for the dust to settle from Crawford's Canelo scalp seeing whether he'll fight for one of the world titles next year.

RECORD: 16-2 (11 KOs)

THE PAST: Resendiz made a living in his native Mexico before coming to America in 2021. He lost his second fight there against battle-tested Marcos Hernandez (UD 12) in September 2021. The 26-year-old got back in the win column before upsetting former unified junior middleweight titlist Jarrett Hurd (TKO 10) at middleweight in March 2023.

He parlayed that into a fight with Elijah Garcia, who stopped him in eight-rounds in September 2023. He jumped to 168 and in his second fight there, upset former IBF beltholder Caleb Plant via 12-round split decision on May 31.

THE FUTURE: Potentially a Plant rematch or a fight with fellow PBC-backed former champion Jermall Charlo, who was tabbed to face Plant in the fall before that defeat.

RECORD: 23-3 (14 KOs)

THE PAST: Plant was a solid amateur and an alternate for the 2012 U.S. Olympic team. As a professional, he quietly went about his business until his big moment came against IBF titleholder Jose Uzcategui (UD 12) in January 2019. "

Sweethands" made three defenses, easily beating Mike Lee (TKO 3), thrilled his hometown fans by putting on a clinic against Vincent Feigenbutz (TKO 10) and whitewashing former titleholder Caleb Truax (UD 12) in January 2021.

He lost his title against Canelo Alvarez (TKO 11) when they met to decide the undisputed champion in November 2021. The 33-year-old scored a highlight-reel knockout of Anthony Dirrell (KO 9) in October 2022 and despite a promising start, suffered a 12-round points loss to David Benavidez in March 2023. That was followed by an 18-month layoff, after which he returned and had to climb off the canvas to stop Trevor McCumby in nine rounds.

His plans for a long-awaited Charlo matchup were put on ice by Resendiz, who upset him via split decision in their May 31 headliner.

THE FUTURE: With both men on the card, he was being manoevured to face Jermall Charlo before Resendiz's surprise win. Perhaps they rematch or he moves forward with the Charlo clash anyway.

RECORD: 22-0-1 (18 KOs)

THE PAST: Sheeraz turned professional at 18 and served his apprenticeship at home in the UK before seeking out Ricky Funez to work with at the Los Angeles-based Ten Goose gym for a period of time. It is no coincidence that he has evolved into a much more complete fighter since struggling with Bradley Skeete in December 2021, coming on late to secure a ninth-round stoppage that night.

The tall boxer-puncher knocked off former world title challenger Liam Williams (TKO 1) last February, stopped then-unbeaten contender Austin Williams (TKO 11) last June and demolished the usually durable Tyler Denny in two rounds for the European title three months later.

However, he struggled when fighting Carlos Adames for the WBC 160-pound world title in February and appeared fortunate to get a 12-round split draw. That prompted a move to super middleweight, where he has linked up with Andy Lee in Ireland. His divisional debut came on July 12 atop Ring III card in New York, stopping Edgar Berlanga in five rounds.

THE FUTURE: Nothing set but looking for big opportunities and isn't short of them in a strong division.

RECORD: 26-1-2 (5 KOs)

THE PAST: Surace turned professional in his native France and was held to a draw in his two of his first five fights as a junior middleweight. He reeled off 22 consecutive home victories and settled at middleweight, though didn't face anyone of note.

For this reason, he was selected to travel to Tijuana, Mexico and jump up to super middleweight for a big opportunity - though he didn't read the script. He memorably iced Jaime Munguia in six rounds last December, winning upset of the year acclaim, though the longtime contender gained revenge in a rematch five months later.

The result was thrown into doubt when the Mexican tested positive for exogenous origin of testosterone.

THE FUTURE: Waiting for everything to play out from the Munguia fight, hopeful the result is declared a no-contest. Regardless of the outcome, he will have several options to choose from across two weight divisions when he does decide to return once more.

RECORD: 22-1 (9 KOs)

THE PAST: The Cuban-born fighter amassed over 300 amateur fights before defecting to Argentina in 2016. His first nine fights took place there before it became clear he had the talent to make an impact on the world stage, brokering a deal heading to Germany in 2019.

That gave his career more focus and he became the IBF mandatory since besting Evgeny Shvedenko in July 2022. He bided his time until Canelo was forced to relinquish the IBF title, edging past Vladimir Shishkin (UD12) for the vacant belt last October.

The 33-year-old then met Canelo for The Ring and undisputed 168-pound titles in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia but lost a 12-round unanimous decision during a forgettable contest on May 3.

THE FUTURE: He has not returned from the Canelo loss yet, but may look to fight in his adopted Germany homeland in the coming months.

Jermall Charlo, Bektemir Melikuziev, Kevin Lele Sadjo, Callum Simpson and Pavel Silyagin.

Click here for the pound-for-pound review, as well as a dozen more divisions assessed - the strawweights, the junior-flyweights, the flyweights, the junior bantamweights, the bantamweights, the junior featherweights, the featherweights, the junior lightweights, the lightweights, junior welterweights, welterweights, junior middleweights and middleweights.