A busy weekend, but without a ton of major movement. We do have two new No. 1 fighters.
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Welterweight
Only slight movement, but both Andre Berto (3) and Jan Zaveck (4, up one spot) strengthen their spots in the top five after their fight. Having watched the fight, I was very impressed with the way Zaveck fought, as he was different and better than I expected. I knew he could fight, but didn't expect he could hang in a firefight that way, and without the eye injury, that fight could have gone the other way easily given Berto's lack of stamina in the past. But both fought well, and I'd love to see a rematch. I think Zaveck made some fans.
Lightweight
Humberto Soto, ranked No. 3 last week, is out after officially moving up to 140 with an easy win over Jose Alfaro. I did not rank Soto at junior welterweight just yet. Would he beat Ashley Theophane, Zab Judah, Erik Morales, Kendall Holt, Devon Alexander, etc.? Maybe, but maybe not. We'll give it another fight at 140 before judging Soto at the new weight.
Coming into the rankings at lightweight is scrappy European champ Gavin Rees. The back end of 135 is getting weaker with all the guys leaving the division. The top two guys, Juan Manuel Marquez and Brandon Rios, are either basically out or on their way soon enough, too. Lightweight is in for a rebuilding phase.
Super Featherweight
Mzonke Fana is inactive now, so the No. 1 man is out. That moves Takashi Uchiyama up to the top spot. In at No. 10 is Juan Carlos Salgado, who may only last the week as he fights No. 9 Argenis Mendez on Saturday.
Super Flyweight
Top man Hugo Cazares lost, so he drops to No. 3. The new No. 1 fighter is Omar Narvaez, who faces top-ranked bantamweight Nonito Donaire on October 22. Tomonobu Shimizu jumps in at No. 2 after beating Cazares. This is a fun division -- there are a lot of guys here who can fight, and they're all about the same level. I wouldn't make Narvaez a severe favorite of anyone in the top ten, and Cazares had been sort of the same, living on the edge in many fights.
Ranked Fighters in Action This Week
Heavyweight
No. 2 Vitali Klitschko (42-2, 39 KO) vs No. 3 Tomasz Adamek (44-1, 28 KO)
Super Featherweight
No. 9 Argenis Mendez (18-1, 9 KO) vs No. 10 Juan Carlos Salgado (23-1-1, 16)
Featherweight
No. 1 Yuriorkis Gamboa (20-0, 16 KO) vs No. 6 Daniel Ponce de Leon (41-3, 34 KO)