Pictured: TTR's #1 ranked contender for the vacant Lineal World Junior Welterweight title, Josh Taylor


IBF champion/WBA Super champion Josh Taylor, The Ring's titleholder, and WBC/WBO champion Jose Carlos Ramirez, TTR's top two ranked junior welterweights, will clash in Las Vegas on May 22 to unify their titles. TTR, as well as the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board (TBRB) and the International Boxing Research Organization-affiliated Cyber Boxing Zone, will be recognizing the winner as the division's new lineal king.

Taylor, 17-0 with 13 KOs, will be fighting in his fourth world title bout while Ramirez, 26-0 with 17 KOs, will be fighting in his sixth.

As we have done in the past, we at TTR are not basing our decision to recognize the winner of the Taylor-Ramirez bout as the lineal champion solely on our rankings but on consensus rankings comprised of ours and those of the TBRB, The Ring, ESPN, and BoxRec. All five of our chosen sources recognize Taylor, Ramirez, and Regis Prograis (26 -1, 22 KOs) as the Top 3 at 140 pounds.

To determine who of the three comprised the consensus Top 2 (although it was fairly obvious), a point system was used: 3 points were assigned for The Ring championship and for a #1 ranking by TTR, the TBRB, ESPN, and BoxRec; 2 points for a #1 ranking by The Ring and for a #2 ranking by TTR, the TBRB, ESPN, and BoxRec; and 1 point for a #2 ranking by The Ring and for a #3 ranking by TTR, the TBRB, ESPN, and BoxRec.

The final tabulations were as follows:

Taylor- 13 points (The Ring title, 3 #1s- TTR, TBRB, ESPN, 1 #3- BoxRec)
Ramirez- 10 points (The Ring's #1, 4 #2s- TTR, TBRB, ESPN, BoxRec)
Prograis- 7 points (1 #1- BoxRec; The Ring's #2; 3 #3s- TTR, TBRB, ESPN)

We're hoping the fight will take place as scheduled, and that it won't end in a draw, a No Contest, or a No Decision, so that we can witness the historic crowning of the new lineal junior welterweight champion of the world.