Have flyweights gotten worse?

Well flyweights now a days are bigger if you consider rehydration after weigh ins, compared to same day weigh ins.

I would say that lower weights may be less competitive due to the lower amounts of boxing participation in this day and age, and the lack of regular bouts (both title and non-title).

However, I still think that these weight classes today are producing the higher quality fighters compared to other heavier divisions, and I would be much more likely to pick these modern fighters over past figures at fly etc. Compared to weight classes such as Lt Heavy, which I wouldn't, even though it contains some absolutely class fighters (Bivol, Gvodzyk etc.)

Fighters like Roman Gonzales (certified ATG), Srisaket sor Rungvisai, Kosei Tanaka, Kazuto Ioka are just some who would fit in very well with past ATG, especially Gonzales, who I feel could beat quite a few. Kosei Tanaka is a three weight world champ at just 23, and I'm very interested to see how he goes along his career.

Flyweights etc. (as always) are never appreciated as much by fans in any era, even when they hold the most special boxers to lace gloves.

Also, I find it funny how the most well known around fly, Ricardo Lopez, is the fighter who I feel is the most massively overrated by fans around this weight.

 

The sanctioning bodies didn't do these little guys any favors by creating their money-grubbing, sanctioning fee rendering junior fly and strawweight divisions. By diluting these divisions further they prevented some outstanding fighters from coming to the fore and becoming true superstars. But by reducing the competition it is only us die-hards that know many of them. Can you imagine how deep the competition could have been over the years with one champ at 112 with the likes of Yoko Gushiken, Jung Koo Chang, Chiquita Gonzalez, Michael Carbajal, Ricardo Lopez, Chocolatito Gonzalez and Rungsivai all engaging in the one weight class?

 

I think it's a combination of factors. Even in developing countries, over time there are fewer and fewer adult men who are so small that they can fight at 112 lb or lower.

A bigger problem for the smaller weight classes is how diluted they are in terms of talent. From Strawweight to Super-Fly, you've got four weight classes, but spanning only 10 lb. They are generally separated by just 3 lb, basically a few good hot meals or a few hours in the sauna depending on which way you're going. So you end up with whatever quality fighters you have often missing each other and fighting in different classes, rather than fighting each other for supremacy, despite there being such negligible size differences between them most of the time. Leaves the weight classes at that end of the spectrum very thin on genuinely top fighters.

 

In the 100+ years since Digger Stanley boxed, the world population has more than quadrupled.

If we look at the countries who in recent years have produce the most sub-112lbs champions, such as Japan, Thailand, and Mexico... well, back at the beginning of the 20th century, those countries had little (if any!) pro boxing.

When you think of all the many countries from around the world that didn't even have pro boxing back then, but do today… why would anyone say, that there are fewer small (112 or below) pros now?

 

The title says: "Have flyweights gotten worse"... so I thought we were talking about flyweights. But I guess, I must have misunderstood something!