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Rodriguez-Cafu: Ranking the top 10 male fighters born in the 21st century
Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez will return to action this weekend when he faces Phumelele Cafu in a super-flyweight unification clash, live on DAZN.
Rodriguez, 21-0 (14), is already a two-weight world champion at the age of 25 and has established himself as a pound-for-pound star.
While most fighters are still gaining experience and building their records at his age, Rodriguez has wasted little time in taking the biggest challenges and passing them with flying colours.
But is he the best young fighter in the world? Here, we rank the top 10 male fighters born in the 21st century ahead of Rodriguez headlining in front of his home fans in Texas on Saturday night.
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10. Jadier Herrera
The Cuban super-featherweight is nicknamed the ‘Pitbull’ and he has lived up to his billing in his professional career to date.
Herrera has won all 17 of his fights with 15 coming via knockout to highlight the power he possesses.
Many of his early fights took place in Dubai, but after signing for Matchroom his last three bouts have all been in the UK.
All three have finished early, and he looks set to continue to rise through the ranks in the 130lb division in the coming months.
9. Yoenis Tellez
Tellez is another Cuban who has caught the eye despite only having 10 fights since turning professional in 2020.
The light-middleweight division has plenty of talent coming through, and Tellez will definitely have some tough challenges ahead.
But he was crowned WBA interim champion after beating former world champion Julian Williams earlier this year, and he should be in line for a full shot at the title before too long.
If he can increase his activity moving forward, Tellez could become a major force in the 154lb division.
8. Adam Azim
Azim has hardly put a foot wrong as a professional and is widely regarded as one of the UK’s brightest young talents.
Guided by esteemed trainer Shane McGuigan, Azim has gradually stepped up his level of competition and dispatched ex-world champion Sergey Lipinets inside the distance last time out.
An all-British clash with Dalton Smith has been mooted, but for now Smith is targeting a fight with WBC light-welterweight champion Subriel Matias later this year.
If he comes through that, a fight with Azim with a world title on the line could be on the cards.
Lewis Storey / Stringer
7. Floyd Schofield
Schofield will not turn 23 until next month but he has quickly moved towards title contention in the lightweight division.
He was due to face Shakur Stevenson for the WBC belt back in February but was forced to withdraw during fight week after being hospitalised with an unspecified illness.
It was a disappointing setback for the American but he bounced back in spectacular fashion to stop ex-world champion Tevin Farmer inside the first round of their fight last month.
Farmer had just taken top-ranked contender William Zepeda the distance twice, but Schofield produced a dominant performance to show that he has a huge future ahead of him.
6. Diego Pacheco
Pacheco will feature on the Rodriguez undercard this weekend as he is scheduled to face Trevor McCumby.
The 24-year-old has won all 23 of his professional fights and is inching towards a shot at a super-middleweight title.
Canelo Alvarez is the current undisputed champion of the division, but that could all change soon. He is due to face Terence Crawford in September, and the belts could become fragmented after that.
Pacheco is highly ranked across the governing bodies and at 6ft 4in tall, he will be a handful for anybody. It would be a major surprise if he does not become a world champion in the next couple of years.
Ed Mulholland/Matchroom
5. Moses Itauma
With Oleksandr Usyk, Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua all moving towards the end of their careers, the heavyweight division needs some fresh blood coming through. Itauma appears to be ready to take over.
Remarkably, he is still only 20, but he cannot be held back any longer. Itauma has made short work of experienced campaigners including Mariusz Wach and Demsey McKean, and is scheduled to face Dillian Whyte in Saudi Arabia next month.
Whyte has competed at the highest level, trading punches with Joshua and Fury, meaning this is likely to be an acid test for Itauma.
But if he comes through it, he will only be heading one way and that is towards becoming the next heavyweight champion of the world.
4. Xander Zayas
Puerto Rico has a proud boxing history, and Zayas could be their next superstar.
Zayas made his professional debut shortly after turning 17, but he has never looked out of his depth in the ring.
Top Rank is known for matching their fighters tough, but Zayas has kept working his way up the rankings with minimal fuss.
He is set to fight for the vacant WBO light-middleweight title against Mexican puncher Jorge Garcia Perez later this month in New York. Puerto Rican fans will turn out in their droves to support him as Zayas bids to follow in the footsteps of the likes of Miguel Cotto and Felix Trinidad.
3. Abdullah Mason
Mason only turned 21 in April, but there has been little doubt about his world-class credentials for some time.
The slick southpaw has the ability to make his opponents look silly at times, while he also has genuine knockout power having won 17 of his 19 fights via stoppage.
He has been very active in 2025, winning three fights inside the distance, and his next bout is already lined up.
Mason will take on Britain’s Sam Noakes for the vacant WBO lightweight belt in Saudi Arabia in November as he gets the chance to pick up the first world title of his professional career.
(Mikey Williams/Top Rank)
2. Brian Norman Jr
Norman Jr has already had 30 fights and he is only 24. He also does not like to hang around, as shown by the 22 knockouts on his record.
After Terence Crawford moved up following his victory over Errol Spence in July 2023, the welterweight division has been looking for its next star.
Jaron Ennis showed his class to earn two belts in the weight class, but he has now also moved up, leaving Norman as the standout name in the division.
He has taken on that mantle and is only getting better. Norman Jr produced arguably the punch of the year to knock out Jin Sasaki to retain his WBO title last month, and now he is scheduled to face Devin Haney in a mouthwatering clash later this year.
Should he beat Haney, Norman Jr will prove that he truly is one of boxing’s biggest superstars.
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1. Jesse Rodriguez
It had to be Rodriguez at the top of the pile. Ring Magazine has Rodriguez ranked as the seventh-best pound-for-pound fighter in the world, and with good reason.
Rodriguez is a relentless pressure fighter but is also smart with his work, making him a nightmare for opponents.
He holds victories over multiple former world champions including Srisaket Sor Rungvisai, Sunny Edwards and Juan Francisco Estrada – beating all three via knockout.
The manner of his wins proves he truly is in a class of his own, and it is likely to be only a matter of time before he moves up into another weight division in pursuit of more titles and an even higher ranking on the pound-for-pound list.
Watch Usyk versus Dubois 2 live and exclusive on DAZN PPV this Saturday - July 19 - for £24.99 UK; $59.99 US; $19.99/equivalent ROW. Buy the PPV now here.
