Super middleweight boxing division 2026
The 168 lb division just got turned upside down. Terence Crawford walked up two weight classes and out-boxed Canelo Álvarez over 12 rounds at Allegiant Stadium on September 13, 2025, taking all four belts and leaving the division’s most bankable star without a title for the first time since 2020. Everything after that has been a scramble.
Super middleweight is now the deepest talent pool in boxing outside heavyweight — and the most physically mismatched. You’ve got 6’4″ contenders fighting 5’8″ champions. Reach gaps of seven or eight inches inside the same weight class. That’s unusual, and it’s why the matchup math at 168 is so fun to argue about heading into 2026.
| Fighter | Height | Reach (approx.) | Stance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diego Pacheco | 6’4″ | 76″ | Orthodox |
| Hamzah Sheeraz | 6’3″ | 77″ | Orthodox |
| David Benavidez | 6’2″ | 74.5″ | Orthodox |
| Edgar Berlanga | 6’1″ | 73.5″ | Orthodox |
| William Scull | 6’1″ | 73″ | Orthodox |
| Lester Martínez | 6’0″ | 73″ | Orthodox |
| Christian M’billi | 5’11” | 73″ | Orthodox |
| Osleys Iglesias | 5’11” | 72″ | Orthodox |
| Terence Crawford | 5’8″ | 74″ | Switch |
| Canelo Álvarez | 5’8″ | 70.5″ | Orthodox |
1. Terence Crawford
Image: Box Azteca / CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Crawford is 5’8″ with a 74-inch reach — a six-inch positive differential that’s freakish for a man that height, and the single biggest reason he could jump from 154 to 168 and still control range against Canelo. He turned 38 in September 2025 and moved to 42-0.
He became the first male fighter to go undisputed in three weight classes in the four-belt era. Whether he defends at 168 in 2026 or vacates and goes hunting elsewhere is the question the entire division is waiting on.
2. Canelo Álvarez
Image: MILLION DOLLAZ WORTH OF GAME / CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
At 5’8″ with a 70.5-inch reach, Canelo has always been the short-armed guy who wins anyway — slipping inside, digging to the body, countering off the shoulder roll. Born July 18, 1990, he unified all four straps by beating William Scull in Riyadh on May 3, 2025, then lost them four months later.
He’s reportedly targeting a return in 2026, and the obvious money fights are a Crawford rematch or finally giving David Benavidez the fight fans have screamed about for three years.
3. Christian M’billi
The Cameroon-born, Montreal-based pressure fighter is one of the most avoided men at 168. Listed at 5’11” with about a 73-inch reach, he’s thickly built — a 2016 Olympian for France who fights in a crouch and throws in volume.
M’billi held WBC interim honors and fought Lester Martínez to a draw on the Canelo–Crawford undercard, which did nothing to settle anything. A rematch or a shot at the full WBC strap is where his 2026 starts.
4. Diego Pacheco
Born in August 2001 in South Central Los Angeles, Pacheco is 6’4″ — a genuine light heavyweight frame squeezed into 168 lbs. The 76-inch reach means he can fight entire rounds without anyone touching him, and he’s unbeaten with a high knockout rate.
The knock on him is the level of opposition. He answered some of that in 2025 by stopping Steven Nelson. If he gets a belt-holder in 2026, he’s the most dangerous stylistic problem in the division.
5. Hamzah Sheeraz
Sheeraz moved up from middleweight after a controversial draw with Carlos Adames in February 2025, and the extra weight suited him immediately. He’s 6’3″ with a reach around 77 inches — longest in the top 10.
On July 12, 2025 at Madison Square Garden, he dropped and stopped Edgar Berlanga in the fifth round. That one performance turned him from prospect into a title mandatory overnight.
6. Osleys Iglesias
The Cuban defector, based in Germany, is the division’s purest puncher. Around 5’11” and compactly built, he’s won nearly every professional fight inside the distance.
He’s the hardest man at 168 to sell tickets with and the hardest to beat on short notice — a bad combination for his schedule, a great one for anyone who wants an upset on the 2026 calendar.
7. Lester Martínez
Guatemala’s first serious world-title threat in decades, Martínez stands 6’0″ and fights with a straight-backed, old-school jab-and-right-hand approach. He’s unbeaten.
His draw with M’billi on the biggest card of 2025 proved he belongs. At 29, he’s hitting his physical peak at exactly the right moment.
8. David Benavidez
“The Mexican Monster” vacated 168 and went to light heavyweight in 2024, beating David Morrell on February 1, 2025 and Anthony Yarde later that year. At 6’2″ with a 74.5-inch reach, he was always big for super middleweight.
But a Canelo fight at 168 is still worth more than anything at 175, and Benavidez has said he’d make the weight for it. He’s the division’s biggest what-if.
9. Edgar Berlanga
The Brooklyn-born Puerto Rican is 6’1″ with a 73.5-inch reach and opened his career with 16 straight first-round knockouts. He went the distance with Canelo in September 2024, losing a wide decision after being dropped in round three.
The Sheeraz loss was his second in a row against elite opposition. At 28, 2026 is a rebuild year or nothing.
10. William Scull
The 6’1″ Cuban southpaw-turned-mover held the IBF belt before losing it to Canelo in Riyadh. He threw and landed historically few punches that night, but he survived 12 rounds with the best body puncher of his generation.
Scull is awkward, durable and still unbeaten outside that one night. Someone’s unbeaten record gets ruined by him in 2026.
Super middleweight in 2026 comes down to one decision: does Crawford stay and defend, or does the division split four ways again? Either answer produces fights. And with frames ranging from 5’8″ to 6’4″ all making the same 168 lbs, almost none of them look like fair fights on paper.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the No. 1 super middleweight in 2026?
Terence Crawford tops the division after out-boxing Canelo Álvarez over 12 rounds at Allegiant Stadium on September 13, 2025, to take all four 168 lb belts and move to 42-0.
Who holds the undisputed super middleweight title?
Crawford became undisputed at 168 lbs in September 2025, making him the first male fighter to go undisputed in three weight classes in the four-belt era.
Who is the tallest fighter in the super middleweight division?
Diego Pacheco at 6’4″ with a 76-inch reach, just ahead of Hamzah Sheeraz at 6’3″ with a 77-inch reach — the longest arms at 168 lbs.
Why is the 168 lb division so physically mismatched?
It features 6’4″ contenders like Pacheco against 5’8″ champions like Crawford and Canelo, creating reach gaps of seven or eight inches inside the same weight class.
What happened to Canelo Álvarez at super middleweight?
Canelo unified all four belts by beating William Scull in Riyadh on May 3, 2025, then lost them to Crawford four months later — his first time without a title since 2020.
Which super middleweight fights are most likely in 2026?
A Crawford–Canelo rematch, Canelo vs. David Benavidez, and a Christian M’billi–Lester Martínez rematch after their draw on the Canelo–Crawford undercard.
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Last Updated: November 1, 2026 | Source: Healthy Celeb
