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''The Ring'' (often called ''The Ring'' magazine or ''Ring'' magazine) is an American
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 ...
magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...
that was first published in 1922 as a boxing and wrestling magazine. As the sporting legitimacy of
professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
came more into question, ''The Ring'' shifted to becoming exclusively a boxing-oriented publication. The magazine is currently owned by Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Enterprises division of
Golden Boy Promotions Golden Boy Promotions, Inc. is an American boxing promotional firm based in Los Angeles, California. The company was established in 2002 by eight-time world champion (in six divisions) Oscar De La Hoya, borrowing his nickname "Golden Boy." His ...
, which acquired it in 2007. ''Ring'' began publishing annual ratings of boxers in 1924.


History

''The Ring'', founded and published by future International Boxing Hall of Fame member
Nat Fleischer Nathaniel Stanley Fleischer (November 3, 1887 – June 25, 1972) was a noted American boxing writer and collector. Career Fleischer was born in New York City. After he graduated from City College of New York in 1908, Fleischer worked for the ...
, has perpetrated boxing scandals, helped make unknown fighters famous worldwide and covered boxing's biggest events of all time. Dan Daniel was a co-founder and prolific contributor to ''The Ring'' through most of its history. It refers to itself (and is referred to by others) as "The Bible of Boxing." During the Fleischer years, the contents page or indicia of every issue carried the claim: "''The Ring'' is a magazine which a man may take home with him. He may leave it on his library table safe in the knowledge that it does not contain one line of matter either in the text or the advertisements which would be offensive. The publisher of ''The Ring'' guards this reputation of his magazine jealously. It is entertaining and it is clean." In 1972, following Fleischer's death, his son-in-law and managing editor Nat Loubet took over as publisher. In 1977, Loubet launched three international editions of the magazine. The Spanish version, '' Ring En Español'', was published in Venezuela and distributed to all Spanish-speaking countries and the United States (U.S.) until 1985. There was also a
Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
ese version published in
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.46 ...
and a
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
version published in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
. In 1976, managing editor of ''The Ring'' Johnny Ort, fabricated records of selected boxers, and elevated their rankings, securing them lucrative fights on the American ABC television network, as part of the United States Championship Tournament orchestrated by promoter Don King. The deception was uncovered by boxing writer Malcolm "Flash" Gordon and ABC staffer
Alex Wallau Alex Wallau (born January 11, 1945) is a former president of the ABC television network. Wallau began his career with ABC in 1976, when he joined the network's Sports division under Roone Arledge, then head of ABC Sports. Wallau went on to become ...
and the United States Championship tournament was cancelled by ABC. In 1979, the magazine was purchased from Loubet by a group led by Dave DeBusschere and
Bert Sugar Herbert Randolph Sugar (June 7, 1936 – March 25, 2012) was an American boxing writer and sports historian known for his trademark fedora and unlit cigar. Biography Early life and education Sugar was born in Washington, D.C. on June 7, 1936 ...
took over as editor. In 1983 Sugar was succeeded by future
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
boxing commissioner Randy Gordon. By 1984 the publication was reported to be over $1 million in debt and a number of top salaried employees, including Gordon, were let go. Nigel Collins of the Ring's defunct sister magazine ''Boxing Illustrated'' took over as editor. In 1989 ''The Ring'' was purchased by Stanley Weston's G.C. London Publishing (later known as Kappa Publishing Group), which also published ''
KO Magazine ''KO Magazine'' was a popular United States boxing magazine. It was first published in 1980, to compete with '' The Ring''. It was founded by Stanley Weston, long-time publisher of numerous boxing and pro wrestling titles. ''KO Magazine'', nic ...
'' and a number of wrestling publications. KO senior writer Steve Farhood became The Ring's editor. Weston was a sentimentalist and 52 years after joining ''The Ring'' magazine as a stock boy, Weston purchased the magazine that gave him his first job. He not only resurrected the magazine from its imminent collapse, he re-established the publication as the definitive source for boxing news. An outstanding boxing artist, Weston painted 57 covers for ''The Ring'' with his first cover, a painting of Billy Conn, for the December 1939 issue. Weston was also a photographer who, according to his own estimate, shot over 100,000 boxing photosthe majority of which are housed in the archives of ''The Ring'' magazine. Sports and Entertainment Publications, LLC, a subsidiary of Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Enterprises, acquired ''The Ring'', ''KO Magazine'', and ''World Boxing'' in 2007. The magazine's rankings are recognized as "official" by some in the U.S. media, particularly
ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
. While some may see a conflict of interest in a boxing promoter being paymaster of what is essentially a magazine/rankings organization that awards world titles and belts, De La Hoya says that is not the case. "These magazines will be held in an editorial trust where they will be operating totally independent of any influence from me or others from the Golden Boy Companies as it relates to editorial direction or content". Also there is a 35-member ratings advisory panel, which include many of the media that cover boxing, who would prevent Golden Boy Promotions from using the magazine for self gain. ''The Ring'' was headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania until 2011 when it was relocated to
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
. The magazine had a sister publication named ''
The Ring Wrestling ''The Ring'' (often called ''The Ring'' magazine or ''Ring'' magazine) is an American boxing magazine that was first published in 1922 as a boxing and wrestling magazine. As the sporting legitimacy of professional wrestling came more into questi ...
'' which came about due to professional wrestling writer Bob Leonard contacting the magazine and expressing that it was too focused on boxing and not giving wrestling enough coverage. Nat Loubet served as the editor of the wrestling magazine as well.


Cover art

Some of the boxers featured on the magazine covers have included Tommy Ryan,
Salvador Sánchez Salvador "Sal" Sánchez Narváez (January 26, 1959 – August 12, 1982) was a Mexican professional boxer born in the town of Santiago Tianguistenco, Estado de México. Sanchez was the WBC and ''The Ring featherweight champion from 1980 to ...
, Jack Dempsey, Pancho Villa,
Max Schmeling Maximilian Adolph Otto Siegfried Schmeling (, ; 28 September 1905 – 2 February 2005) was a German boxer who was heavyweight champion of the world between 1930 and 1932. His two fights with Joe Louis in 1936 and 1938 were worldwide cultural ev ...
,
Joe Louis Joseph Louis Barrow (May 13, 1914 – April 12, 1981) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1934 to 1951. Nicknamed the Brown Bomber, Louis is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential boxers of all time. He re ...
, Sugar Ray Robinson, Jake LaMotta, Rocky Marciano, Willie Pep,
Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, ...
, Alexis Argüello, Wilfred Benítez, Wilfredo Gómez,
Roberto Durán Roberto Durán Samaniego (born June 16, 1951) is a Panamanian former professional boxer who competed from 1968 to 2001. He held world championships in four weight classes: lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight and middleweight, as ...
, Larry Holmes, Marvin Hagler, Sugar Ray Leonard,
Bud Taylor Charles Bernard "Bud" Taylor (July 22, 1903 – March 6, 1962) was an American boxer from Terre Haute, Indiana. Nicknamed the ''"Blonde Terror of Terre Haute"'', he held the NBA World Bantamweight Championship during his career in 1927. ''The R ...
,
Mike Tyson Michael Gerard Tyson (born June 30, 1966) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1985 to 2005. Nicknamed "Iron Mike" and "Kid Dynamite" in his early career, and later known as "The Baddest Man on the Planet", Tyson is con ...
,
Evander Holyfield Evander Holyfield (born October 19, 1962) is an American former professional boxer who competed between 1984 and 2011. He reigned as the Undisputed championship (boxing), undisputed champion at cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight in the late 1 ...
, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Thomas Hearns, Roy Jones Jr., Bernard Hopkins,
Julio César Chávez Julio César Chávez González (; born July 12, 1962), also known as Julio César Chávez Sr., is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1980 to 2005. A multiple-time world champion in three weight divisions, Chávez was list ...
,
Félix Trinidad Félix Juan Trinidad García (born January 10, 1973), popularly known as "Tito" Trinidad, is a Puerto Rican former professional boxer who competed from 1990 to 2008. He held multiple world championships in three weight classes and is said to ...
, Manny Pacquiao, Oscar De La Hoya, Mauro Mina and
Ricardo Mayorga Ricardo Antonio Mayorga Perez (born October 3, 1973) is a Nicaraguan professional boxer and former mixed martial artist. In boxing he is a former two-weight world champion, having held the unified WBA (Unified), WBC, ''Ring'' magazine, and lin ...
. In 1978, boxer Cathy "Cat" Davis became the first woman ever to be on a cover of ''The Ring'', and she held the distinction of being the only woman featured on the cover of the magazine until January 2016, when Ronda Rousey joined her and also became the first
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 ...
fighter featured on its cover. ''The Ring'' has used cover artwork created by famed artists such as LeRoy Neiman and
Richard T. Slone Richard T. Slone is a self-taught artist residing in the United States. He was born in 1974 in Newton-in-Furness, Lancashire, a northern English town. His work rose in popularity in the early 2000's when it began being noticed by celebrities a ...
.


''The Ring'' world champions

''The Ring'' has its own championship belt in a given weight class where ''The Ring'' champion holds a lineal reign to the throne, the man who beat the man. ''The Ring'' began awarding championship belts in 1922. The first ''Ring'' world title belt was awarded to
heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the W ...
champion Jack Dempsey and the second was awarded to
flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing 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 bo ...
champion Pancho Villa. ''The Ring'' stopped giving belts to world champions in the 1990s, then reintroduced their titles in 2002. ''The Ring'' stated that their title was "intended to reward fighters who, by satisfying rigid criteria, can justify a claim as the true and only world champion in a given
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 ...
". It echoed many critics' arguments that the sanctioning bodies in charge of boxing championships had undermined the sport by pitting undeserving contenders against undeserving "champions" and forcing the boxing public to see mismatches for so-called "world championships". ''The Ring'' attempts to be more authoritative and open than the sanctioning bodies' rankings, with a page devoted to full explanations for ranking changes. A fighter pays no sanctioning fees to defend or fight for the title at stake, contrary to practices of the sanctioning bodies. However, many boxing journalists complained that ''The Ring'' ignored the world championship lineage when they started awarding titles again. A controversy described by Cliff Rold of ''BoxingScene.com'' is for example, the "world" light-heavyweight title was considered vacant from the time Michael Spinks went up to heavyweight in 1985 until 1996. While the ''Cyber Boxing Zone'' and the International Boxing Research Organization considers Virgil Hill's defeat of
Henry Maske Henry Maske (, ; born 6 January 1964) is a German former professional boxer and one of Germany's most popular sports figures. He held the IBF light heavyweight title from 1993 until 1996. Amateur career Maske was born in Treuen ...
(who were the two highest rated light-heavyweights) as the beginning of the new lineage, ''The Ring'' awarded their newly reintroduced title to
Roy Jones Roy Levesta Jones Jr. (born January 16, 1969) is an American former professional boxer who holds dual American and Russian citizenship. He competed in boxing from 1989 to 2018, and held multiple world championships in four weight classes, incl ...
. In 2002, ''The Ring'' editor, Nigel Collins, acknowledged that if their championship policy was in place in 1997, Dariusz Michalczewski, who defeated Hill, "probably would have been ''The Ring'' Champion." Under the original version of the championship policy, there were only two ways that a boxer could win ''The Ring''s title: defeat the reigning champion; or win a box-off between the magazine's number-one and number-two rated contenders (or, sometimes, number-one and number-three rated). A vacant ''Ring'' championship was filled when the number-one contender in a weight-division battles the number-two contender or the number-three contender (in cases where ''The Ring'' determined that the number-two and number-three contenders were close in abilities and records). The ratings are compiled by the magazine's editorial board, with the participation of ''The Ring'' Ratings Panel of boxing journalists from around the world. A fighter could not be stripped of the title unless he lost, decided to move to another weight division, or retired. In May 2012, citing the number of vacancies in various weight classes as primary motivation, ''The Ring'' unveiled a new championship policy. Under the new policy, ''The Ring'' title can be awarded when the No. 1 and No. 2 fighters face one another or when the No. 1 and 2 contenders choose not to fight one another and either of them fights No. 3, No. 4 or No. 5, the winner may be awarded ''The Ring'' belt. In addition, there are now seven ways for a fighter to lose his title: * The champion loses a fight in the weight class in which he is champion. * The champion moves to another weight class. * The champion does not schedule a fight in any weight class for 18 months. * The champion does not schedule a fight at his championship weight for 18 months (even if he fights at another weight). * The champion does not schedule a fight with a top five contender from any weight class for two years. * The champion retires. * The champion tests positive for a banned substance. Many media outlets and members are extremely critical of the new championship policy and state that if this new policy is followed ''The Ring'' title will lose the credibility it once held. They then later changed the policy so vacant belts can only be awarded to the winner of No. 1 vs No. 2 or if No. 3 is deemed worthy by The Ring’s Editorial Board. The purchase of ''The Ring'' magazine by Golden Boy Promotions in 2007, the dismissal of editor-in-chief Nigel Collins and several editorial staff in 2011 and a series of questionable ratings decisions by the new editors prompted many members of ''The Ring'' Ratings Advisory Panel to resign. This led to the formation of the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board in 2012 headed by boxing historians Springs Toledo, Cliff Rold and Tim Starks. Golden Boy has publicized ''The Rings World Championship when the title is at stake in fights it promotes (such as
Joe Calzaghe vs. Roy Jones Jr. Joe Calzaghe vs. Roy Jones Jr., billed as ''Battle of the Superpowers'', was a boxing light-heavyweight superfight. The fight was held on November 8, 2008,Dirs B Joe Calzaghe v Roy Jones Jr' BBC Sport, 9 November 2008 at Madison Square Garden. T ...
in 2008).


Current champions


Men's

As of


Women's

As of


Current ''The Ring'' #1 ranked fighters

Note: ''The Ring'' champions are also noted as No. 1 fighters


Men's


Women's


List of pound for pound #1 fighters

As of , . Keys: : Current P4P #1


See also

* List of ''The Ring'' world champions * List of ''The Ring'' pound for pound rankings * List of fights between two ''The Ring'' pound for pound boxers * ''The Ring'' magazine Comeback of the Year * ''The Ring'' magazine Event of the Year * ''The Ring'' magazine Fighter of the Year * ''The Ring'' magazine Fight of the Year * ''The Ring'' magazine Hall of Fame * ''The Ring'' magazine Knockout of the Year * ''The Ring'' magazine Pound for Pound * ''The Ring'' magazine Progress of the Year (discontinued) * ''The Ring'' magazine Prospect of the Year (discontinued between 1989 and 2010) * ''The Ring'' magazine Round of the Year * ''The Ring'' magazine Upset of the Year * '' The Ring: Boxing the 20th Century'' *
List of professional wrestling magazines This is a list of professional wrestling magazines. They are published either in print or online and range from official magazines of professional wrestling promotions to "dirt sheets", which cover more insider information and sometimes rumors. So ...


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ring 1922 establishments in the United States Sports magazines published in the United States Boxing magazines Magazines established in 1922 Magazines published in Los Angeles Magazines published in Pennsylvania Professional wrestling magazines Golden Boy Promotions