Flyweight is a
weight class
Weight classes are divisions of competition used to match competitors against others of their own size. Weight classes are used in a variety of sports, especially combat sports (such as boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts and wrestling). Alte ...
in
combat sport
A combat sport, or fighting sport, is a competitive contact sport that usually involves one-on-one combat. In many combat sports, a contestant wins by scoring more points than the opponent, submitting the opponent with a hold, disabling the oppo ...
s.
Boxing
Flyweight is a class in
boxing
Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...
which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb).
Professional boxing
The flyweight division was the last of boxing's eight traditional weight classes to be established. Before 1909, anyone below
featherweight was considered a
bantamweight, regardless of how small the boxer. In 1911, the organization that eventually became the
British Boxing Board of Control held a match that crowned Sid Smith as the first flyweight champion of the world.
Jimmy Wilde, who reigned from 1916 to 1923, was the first fighter recognized both in Britain and the United States as a flyweight champion.
Other notable flyweights include
Victor Perez Victor Perez or Víctor Pérez may refer to:
*Victor Perez (Tunisian boxer) (1911–1945), Tunisian boxer
**''Victor Young Perez
''Victor "Young" Perez'' , also known as ''Surviving Auschwitz'' in the United Kingdom, is a 2013 French biographic ...
,
Pancho Villa,
Walter McGowan,
Pascual Pérez,
Pone Kingpetch,
Fighting Harada
Masahiko Harada (born April 5, 1943), better known as Fighting Harada, is a Japanese former professional boxer. He is a world champion in two weight classes, having held the NYSAC, WBA, and ''The Ring'' undisputed flyweight titles from 1962 ...
,
Masao Ohba,
Chartchai Chionoi
Chartchai Chionoi ( th, ชาติชาย เชี่ยวน้อย; ) a.k.a. Chartchai Laemfapha ( th, ชาติชาย แหลมฟ้าผ่า; ) or birth name Naris Chionoi ( th, นริศ เชี่ยวน้อ� ...
,
Efren Torres
Efren Torres born La Palma, Mexico,(November 29, 1943 – February 25, 2010) was a Mexican professional boxer, who was world champion in the flyweight division. Torres was born in La Palma, Mexico in 1943, and spent most of his early life in his ...
,
Erbito Salavarria,
Miguel Canto,
Dave McAuley,
Charlie Magri,
Gabriel Bernal,
Santos Laciar,
Sot Chitalada,
Yong-Kang Kim,
Yuri Arbachakov,
Danny Romero,
Mark "Too Sharp" Johnson,
Manny Pacquiao,
Jorge Arce,
Vic Darchinyan,
Nonito Donaire,
Pongsaklek Wonjongkam,
Amnat Ruenroeng
Amnat Ruenroeng ( th, อำนาจ รื่นเริง; IPA:; born December 18, 1979), also known as Amnat Kasetphatthana ( th, อำนาจ เกษตรพัฒนา) is a Thai professional boxer and kickboxer who held the IBF ...
,
Román González,
McWilliams Arroyo
McWilliams Arroyo Acevedo (born December 5, 1985) is a Puerto Rican professional boxer who has held the WBC interim flyweight title since February 2021. He previously challenged for the IBF flyweight title in 2014, and the WBC and ''Ring'' maga ...
,
Donnie Nietes,
Nicola Adams
Nicola Virginia Adams (born 26 October 1982) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2017 to 2019. She retired with an undefeated record and held the WBO female flyweight title in 2019. As an amateur, she became the first fe ...
.
Current world champions
Current ''The Ring'' world rankings
As of November 12, 2022.
Keys:
: Current ''
The Ring'' world champion
Longest reigning world flyweight champions
Below is a list of longest reigning flyweight champions in boxing measured by the individual's longest reign. Career total time as champion (for multiple time champions) does not apply.
Amateur boxing
Olympic Champions
*
1904:
*
1920
Events January
* January 1
** Polish–Soviet War in 1920: The Russian Red Army increases its troops along the Polish border from 4 divisions to 20.
** Kauniainen, completely surrounded by the city of Espoo, secedes from Espoo as its own ma ...
:
*
1924
Events
January
* January 12 – Gopinath Saha shoots Ernest Day, whom he has mistaken for Sir Charles Tegart, the police commissioner of Calcutta, and is arrested soon after.
* January 20– 30 – Kuomintang in China hold ...
:
*
1928
Events January
* January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly proving the existence of DNA.
* January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris Bazhano ...
:
*
1932
Events January
* January 4 – The British authorities in India arrest and intern Mahatma Gandhi and Vallabhbhai Patel.
* January 9 – Sakuradamon Incident: Korean nationalist Lee Bong-chang fails in his effort to assassinate Emperor Hir ...
:
*
1936:
*
1948:
*
1952:
*
1956
Events
January
* January 1 – The Anglo-Egyptian Condominium ends in Sudan.
* January 8 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. evangelical Christian missionaries, Nate Saint, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Jim Elliot and Pete Fleming, are kille ...
:
*
1960:
*
1964:
*
1968
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide.
Events January–February
* January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia.
* J ...
:
*
1972:
*
1976:
*
1980
Events January
* January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission.
* January 6 – Global Positioning System time epoch begins at 00:00 UTC.
* January 9 – In ...
:
*
1984:
*
1988:
*
1992:
*
1996:
*
2000:
*
2004:
*
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
:
*
2012:
*
2016:
*
2020:
Pan American Champions
*
1951:
Alberto Barenghi (
ARG)
*
1955
Events January
* January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama.
* January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut.
* January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijiangs ...
: Hilario Correa (
MEX)
*
1959:
Miguel Angel Botta (
ARG)
*
1963: Floreal García (
URU)
*
1967:
Francisco Rodríguez (
VEN)
*
1971:
Francisco Rodríguez (
VEN)
*
1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
:
Ramón Duvalón (
CUB)
*
1979:
Alberto Mercado
Alberto Mercado Monserrate (born January 2, 1961) is a former Jr. Featherweight boxer who was on the verge of fighting for a world title at least twice in his career.
Amateur boxing career
Mercado started boxing as an amateur at the age of 12, ...
(
PUR)
*
1983:
Pedro Orlando Reyes
Pedro Orlando Reyes (born 23 February 1959) is a retired Cuban amateur boxer. He won gold medals at the 1983 Pan American Games and 1986 World Championships, placing second in 1989. He could not compete in the 1984 and 1988 Olympics due to their ...
(
CUB)
*
1987: Adalberto Regalado (
CUB)
*
1991: José Ramos (
CUB)
*
1995:
Joan Guzmán
Joan Guzmán (born May 1, 1976) is a Dominican former professional boxer who competed from 1997 to 2014. He held world championships in two weight classes, including the WBO super bantamweight title from 2002 to 2005, and the WBO junior lightw ...
(
DOM)
*
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...
:
Omar Andrés Narváez (
ARG)
*
2003:
Yuriorkis Gamboa (
CUB)
*
2007:
McWilliams Arroyo
McWilliams Arroyo Acevedo (born December 5, 1985) is a Puerto Rican professional boxer who has held the WBC interim flyweight title since February 2021. He previously challenged for the IBF flyweight title in 2014, and the WBC and ''Ring'' maga ...
(
PUR)
*
2011:
Robeisy Ramírez
Robeisy Eloy Ramírez Carrazana (born 20 December 1993) is a Cuban professional boxer. As an amateur, Ramírez won gold medals at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics as a flyweight and bantamweight respectively.
Amateur career Summer Olympic results
Lon ...
(
CUB)
Kickboxing
In
kickboxing, a flyweight fighter generally weighs 53 kg (116 lb) or under. The
International Kickboxing Federation (IKF) Flyweight division (professional and amateur) is 112.1 lb. – 117 lb. or 50.95 kg – 53.18 kg.
In
ONE Championship, the flyweight division is up to .
Mixed Martial Arts
The flyweight division in
mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incor ...
– as defined by the
Nevada State Athletic Commission combat sports
A combat sport, or fighting sport, is a competitive contact sport that usually involves one-on-one combat. In many combat sports, a contestant wins by scoring more points than the opponent, submitting the opponent with a hold, disabling the oppo ...
doctrine and by the
Association of Boxing Commissions – groups together all competitors 125
lb (57
kg) and below. It sits between
Strawweight (106 lb-115 lb) and
Bantamweight (126 lb-135lb).
The flyweight division in mixed martial arts refers to a number of different weight classes:
*The
UFC's flyweight division, which groups competitors within 116 to 125 lb (53 to 57 kg)
*The
Pancrase light flyweight division with an upper limit of 120 lb
*The
Shooto flyweight division with an upper limit of 115 lb
*The
ONE Championship's flyweight division, with upper limit at
*The
Road FC's flyweight division, with upper limit at 125 lb (57 kg)
Professional champions
These tables are not always up to date. Last updated on September 4th, 2022.
Men:
Women:
See also
*
List of current MMA Flyweight Champions
*
List of Road FC Flyweight Champions
*
List of current MMA Women's Flyweight Champions
References
External links
{{Boxing weight classes
Mixed martial arts weight classes
*
Boxing weight classes
Kickboxing weight classes
Taekwondo weight classes
Wrestling weight classes
*
*