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Moses Itauma and the other Commonwealth champions
Moses Itauma joined a storied list of Commonwealth champions with his knockout of Dillian Whyte out in Saudi Arabia.
An international-level belt, the Commonwealth strap replaced the former Empire title as the United Kingdom granted independence to certain territories around the world.
Established in 1954 as the Empire and Commonwealth Championships Committee by the British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC), the current name of the Commonwealth Boxing Council (CBC) was adopted in 1997.
Here is the complete list of the current Commonwealth champions, and the status of divisions without belt holders.
Which fighters are eligible for Commonwealth titles?
Fighters that are born in countries affiliated to the Commonwealth are automatically eligible to be considered when it comes to CBC belts.
There are currently 59 countries that form the Commonwealth, including the four constituent members of the United Kingdom.
On top of this, fighters that become naturalised citizens of a Commonwealth member are also eligible to compete for a Commonwealth title.
What is the Commonwealth Silver title?
Rather than set up final eliminators for their full titles, the CBC decided to implement a secondary belt to establish contenders. Labelled the Commonwealth Silver title, champions receive a silver version of the belt handed to ‘full’ champions.
Heavyweight – Moses Itauma
It has gone under the radar, but Moses Itauma was awarded the full Commonwealth title at heavyweight after defeating Dillian Whyte in August.
Previously the Commonwealth Silver champion, Itauma was pictured with a gold strap after defeating his fellow Brit.
Leigh Dawney/Queensberry
With a possible world-title shot on the horizon, it would be a surprise to see Itauma defend his Commonwealth strap. Besides, with him moving from Silver to full titleholder, there is no designated contender.
- Read next | Moses Itauma's next moves after Whyte blowout
Cruiserweight – Aloys Junior
Aloys Junior is a rising star in the cruiserweight division, with ‘The Animal’ earning the Commonwealth strap at 200lbs with a stunning knockout of David Jamieson in May.
The Commonwealth belt was not on the line when Junior defeated fellow Brit Ellis Zorro in July, but ‘The Animal’ still serves as the CBC champion. He has made plenty of noise regarding a potential fight with British title holder Viddal Junior, a bout that would pit two of the UK’s most exciting cruiserweight prospects head-to-head.
Light heavyweight – Lewie Edmondson
Holder of the Lonsdale belt at 175lbs, Lewie Edmondson also retains the Commonwealth strap at light heavyweight. Defeated last time out by Ukrainian challenger Daniel Lapin, Edmondson’s unbeaten record may have evaporated but he stills holds two major belts in the British boxing scene.
Prior to taking the Lapin fight on the undercard of Oleksandr Usyk’s win over Daniel Dubois at Wembley, Edmondson targeted a fight with domestic rival Ezra Taylor.
That bout has come to fruition, with the BBBofC ordering Edmondson to face mandatory challenger Taylor. A date and venue is yet to be announced by promoter Frank Warren.
Super middleweight – Callum Simpson
Callum Simpson holds the British, Commonwealth, and European titles at 168lbs, complicating his defences. Since winning the Commonwealth strap against Zak Chelli in August 2024 Simpson has successfully defended his crown twice.
There was a lot of noise about Simpson facing Commonwealth Silver title holder Mark Jeffers, with the full champion stating that such a bout would be a step back.
Simpson was vindicated by his assessment when Jeffers lost to Sean Hemphill on the undercard of the Commonwealth champion’s successful European title fight with Ivan Zucco in June. Charlotte Tattersall/Getty Images
There will be a new super middleweight Silver titlist in October, with James Hawley facing Frankie Davey for the secondary belt at York Hall.
Middleweight – Kieron Conway
Kieron Conway is another dual-titlist, holding the British and Commonwealth middleweight belts. He is scheduled to face George Liddard , live on DAZN, on Friday, October 17.
Richard Pelham/Getty Images
Liddard is the Commonwealth Silver belt holder, meaning that at least one belt will be vacant if there is a winner when the pair face later this year.
Super welterweight – Sam Gilley
Sam Gilley is looking to bounce back from a shock 76-76 draw against Gideon Onyenani last time out on the undercard of Fabio Wardley’s knockout of Justis Huni in June.
Onyenani was not eligible for the Commonwealth belt that Gilley holds, but the latter's next opponent will be able to walk away from the contest with the title.
Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing will organise the fight between Gilley and Ishmael Davis, a bout that also serves as a title fight for the vacant Lonsdale belt at 154lbs.
At the time of writing, there is no Commonwealth Silver title holder at super welterweight.
Welterweight – Constantin Ursu
Moldovan-born Constantin Ursu is eligible for Commonwealth belts thanks to his naturalised status as a UK citizen. He defeated Eithan James for the vacant strap at welterweight back in March, knocking out his opponent in the seventh round.
Joel Kodua secured the Commonwealth Silver title back in June, winning alongside it the BBBofC Southern area title. His final-round stoppage of Daniel Francis also served as an eliminator for the English belt, implying that Kodua will not be meeting Ursu any time soon for the full Commonwealth title.
Super lightweight – Jack Rafferty
Rafferty is one of the longest-serving Commonwealth champions, having held his super lightweight belt since December 2023. Three successful defences down, the undefeated Mancunian faces challenger Chamberlain in the main event of a Queensberry Promotions show at the Planet Ice Arena in Altrincham.
Queensberry PromotionsCommonwealth Silver champion at 140lbs is Billy Pickles, a Yorkshireman with an 18-1 record.
- Read next | Rafferty-Chamberlain: Current reigning British title holders and status of vacant Lonsdale belts
Lightweight – Sam Noakes
Sam Noakes is effectively still the Commonwealth champion at 135lbs, but he could be forced to vacate his belt later this year. The unbeaten 28-year-old is in line to face Abdullah Mason for the vacant World Boxing Organisation (WBO) world title in November, on a Riyadh Season-backed show called ‘Night of the Champions.’
Liam Dillon holds the Commonwealth Silver belt at lightweight, with the Londoner returning to the ring to face unbeaten Ahmed Hatim on Saturday, September 13.
Super featherweight – Ryan Garner
Ryan Garner is after a world title, but the European super-featherweight champion added the British and Commonwealth straps to his collection at the end of July with victory over Reece Bellotti .
Leigh Dawney/Queensberry
With that win still fresh, there is no expectation for Garner to make a defence of his new titles any time soon.
Ibrahim Nadim picked up the Silver super featherweight belt during July, but the 26-year-old – led by former world champion Ricky Hatton – is currently targeting the English belt at 130lbs.
Featherweight – Zak Miller
Zak Miller picked up the Commonwealth featherweight title at the second attempt at the start of the year, defeating Masood Abdulah by majority decision. He had previously challenged Nathaniel Collins for the strap in 2023, losing that bout – also by majority decision.
Miller also won the British title at 126lbs but has subsequently vacated the belt to face Lyon Woodstock on the undercard of Rafferty-Chamberlain. Woodstock put up a valiant effort, with Miller drenched in the blood of his opponent as he made another successful defence of his Commonwealth title.
Alex Livesey/Getty Images
Northern Irish fighter Colm Murphy is the current holder of the Commonwealth Silver belt. The 25-year-old also holds the European Boxing Union (EBU) Silver title, offering him to two routes to a prestigious belt.
Super bantamweight – Dennis McCann
The super-bantamweight division is somewhat frozen, with Commonwealth champion Dennis McCann’s career currently on hold amidst an anti-doping investigation.
McCann returned an adverse finding of anabolic-androgenic steroids, drostanole and trenbolone, ahead of his cancelled fight with Peter McGrail last December. McCann has not been banned but has not fought since July 2024.
Ian Walton / Matchroom Boxing
The EBU has stripped McCann of his European title, earned in his last fight, but the CBC have continued to list the Kent fighter as their champion at super bantamweight.
With no Silver champion currently in situ, it remains to be seen what happens with the Commonwealth belts at 122lbs.
Bantamweight – Andrew Cain
Scouser Andrew Cain has served as Commonwealth champion at bantamweight since July 2024, when he defeated former title holder Ashley Lane by technical knockout.
His first defence of the belt was against Charlie Edwards, a split decision victory preserving Cain’s status as champion.
Ryan Hiscott/Getty Images
Scot Lennon Mulligan holds the Silver strap, which places him in line to face Cain for the full version of the title. However, with Cain ranked third by the World Boxing Council (WBC), fifth by the WBO and eighth by the International Boxing Federation (IBF), it is likely that the 29-year-old will put everything towards securing a world title shot.
As such, Cain may have to relinquish his Commonwealth title in order to pursue opportunities that may lead to a world-championship fight.
Super flyweight – Matty McHale
Scot Matty McHale picked up the vacant Commonwealth strap at super flyweight in June, defeating Sean Bruce by fifth-round stoppage.
A bronze medallist at the unrelated Commonwealth Games in 2022, McHale previously held the Commonwealth Silver belt.
With no Silver champion to establish a clear contender, it is unclear who McHale will be fighting next.
Flyweight – Vacant (Harvey Horn v Paul Roberts ordered)
There is currently no Commonwealth champion at flyweight, with most recent title holder Conner Kelsall vacating his title during a year-long absence from the ring.
The clash between Harvey Horn and Paul Roberts on Saturday, October 4 will be for both the British and Commonwealth straps at 112lbs, with both titles currently vacant.
Alfie Clegg earned the Silver strap with a victory over Namibian Jonas Erastus at the end of June, positioning the 26-year-old for a shot at the full title sooner rather than later.
Light flyweight – Craig Derbyshire
Craig Derbyshire is proof that persistence can pay off. The Yorkshireman took 10 attempts before earning his first win as a professional boxer, with his first title fight taking place 28 bouts into his career.
After winning the BBBofC Central area super flyweight title, Derbyshire then proceeded to lose seven times in a row. He has fluctuated between a host of weights, fighting as high as 124lbs and as low as 107lbs, his current division.
After unsuccessfully challenging for the Commonwealth belt at flyweight in 2023, Derbyshire returned later that year to win the title at light flyweight.
He will defend his crown for a second time against Liam Dring, the current Commonwealth Silver title holder. The pair will meet in Alfreton on Saturday, September 6.
Divisions without titles
The CBC declares champions in all but two of boxing’s divisions, with bridgerweight and strawweight not currently recognised by the Council.
Bridgerweight is a fledgling division, only recognised by the WBC and World Boxing Association (WBA) at world level.
All four major sanctioning bodies award world titles at strawweight, often referred to as minimumweight, but there are no Commonwealth champions at 105lbs.
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