Depending on who you ask, countless boxing greats are yet to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Each year, we witness the Boxing Writers Association of America and boxing historians from around the globe receive ballots and cast votes.
Recently, we’ve seen the likes of Floyd Mayweather, Andre Ward, Timothy Bradley, and Wladimir Klitschko be introduced into the esteemed HOF, and we’re four months out from the 2024 class.
Due to the heavy talent that’s been added over the past decade, we shouldn’t expect 2024 to hold the same weight. However, when looking at the current roster of active boxers, several names emerge when questioning which fighters are heading to Hall of Fame classes of the future.
With that said, here’s my list of the top five active boxers who are most certainly guaranteed a position in the HOF following their retirement, and don’t forget to check out our top boxing betting sites before you go and place your wagers.
Tyson “The Gypsy King” Fury
Love him or hate him, Tyson Fury has been the most dominant heavyweight boxer over the past decade (and then some).
Aged 35, it’s difficult to argue that Fury has surpassed his prime, but the undefeated two-time heavyweight champ is still considered the best of a generation in his weight class.
In his first claim of gold, ‘The Gypsy King’ boxed and moved his way around a current Hall of Famer and long-reigning champion in Wladimir Klitschko. More remarkably, and following a hiatus from the sport, he fought addiction and gained a ton of weight but still managed to fight his demons and return to the sport in tip-top shape.
Five fights following his return, he overcame the nightmare punching power of Deontay Wilder. Unbeknown to his style, Fury employed an aggressive approach to win by stoppage and reclaimed the WBC strap.
Fury has since defended his title on three occasions and kept an unblemished record, thus cementing his position as the world’s heavyweight champion 15 years after his professional boxing debut.
Canelo Alvarez
Boasting a 60-2-2 professional record alongside an eye-watering title fight record of 21-2-1, can anyone argue Canelo’s status as a future Hall of Famer? Should he retire in two years with four straight losses, I still don’t see a world where he doesn’t receive the prestigious honors at some point in the future.
He’s had an incredible career, and it’s far from over. After walking through the former undisputed super welterweight champion Jermell Charlo in 2023, a bout which represented his 22nd opponent who held a world title; the fighting pride of Mexico is now weighing up his options for 2024 and is likely to compete against Terence Crawford.
With that said, HOF status is already cemented for Canelo, who now holds championships in the 175, 168, 160, and 154 weight classes.
Naoya Inoue
Let’s put some respect on the lower-weight divisions, shall we? And who better than Japan’s superstar of the sweet science, Naoya Inoue?
Inoue’s bantamweight reign is legendary, with seven title defenses and a dominant performance over David Carmona. Not to mention, he’d already captured the WBC light flyweight strap after just six fights and decided to all the shine at bantamweight.
From taking the WBA bantamweight gold from Jamie McDonnell to becoming the undisputed champ after a second-round stoppage of Nonito Donaire to making Paul Butler look amateur. In 2023, he outworked the WBC and WBO super bantamweight champ Stephen Fulton Jr to then walk through the IBF and WBA super BW king Marlon Tapales.
All of the above was achieved by his 30th birthday, as the Japanese megastar could retire any day now and know that a position in the HOF awaits him. As a four-division champ who’s undefeated and has accomplished undisputed status on two occasions, there isn’t much left for him to accomplish besides super-fights and more appearances on American soil.
Terence Crawford
We couldn’t predict future Hall of Fame contenders without mentioning the current pound-for-pound No.1 on the planet. Terence “Bud” Crawford is a generational talent who positioned himself into the upper echelon of boxing excellence.
In 2023, ‘Bud’ collected his fortieth victory of an undefeated career in a history-making unification bout versus Errol Spence Jr. Not only did he dispatch one of the most skilled welterweight fighters in Spence, but he achieved his win emphatically via a ninth-round TKO.
At 147 pounds, Crawford is king, but he’s also won championships in three weight classes and undisputed honors in two. Most impressively, the Spence win marked the eighth time he’d crushed an opponent’s unbeaten record since 2013.
There isn’t much competition left for Crawford at 147lbs, as Spence was viewed as his most worthy challenger. In turn, fans are preying that the Omaha native will skip a few weight classes and, at some point, face Canelo Alvarez.
Devin Haney
Australia’s George Kambosos Jr. is a believer that a seat at the table of the Hall of Fame awaits him. Still, it was Devin Haney (31-0, 15 knockouts) who wiped out the lightweight division, including Kambosos in two consecutive undisputed title bouts.
The undefeated American then trumped another HOF potential candidate in Lomachenko before relinquishing the undisputed titles to prove his worth at super lightweight by dethroning Regis Prograis of the WBC gold, making him a two-weight world champion.
Many critics slated Haney’s abilities prior to the Lomachenko and Prograis bouts, but who’s laughing now? Sure, the former gave him a good scrap, but he was completely outclassed as Haney proved, undoubtedly, to be one of the greatest fighters on the planet.
Aged 26, he’s still young in his career, and yes, I could be jumping the gun by placing him on this list; however, with several potential super fights, including the likes of Teofimo Lopez, Ryan Garcia, or “Tank” Davis at 140 pounds, who knows what Haney could accomplish before its time to hang up the gloves.
