Kickboxing Rankings: Middleweight Division, August 2011

Reintroducing kickboxing rankings to Head Kick Legend this month, we'll start off with one of the two major weight classes in the sport today: Middleweight (70 - 72.5 kg.).

Given the fact that middleweight continues to have perhaps the most depth of any division in kickboxing, we'll stick with top 25 rankings here. Other divisions may require rankings which are not as extensive.

Feel free to discuss the rankings. This sort of thing is inherently subjective and, in a sport as wide open as kickboxing, really lends itself to discussion. Enjoy.

The Rankings:

It should come as no surprise that two-time K-1 MAX champion Giorgio Petrosyan stands atop the division, just as he has since winning the K-1 World MAX 2009 tournament in October 2009 (one might even argue a bit longer). Petrosyan is currently on the shelf, as he re-injured his left hand in a July 16th victory over Hinata Watanabe.

Andy Souwer is 2-1 on the year, with victories over Yoshihiro Sato and L'houcine Ouzgni balancing out a massive upset against Abraham Roqueni in February (a bout marked by some questionable refereeing). For our purposes, Souwer's recent performances are enough to push him ahead of Buakaw Por. Pramuk, Buakaw having seemed to commit his year to working primarily under the Thai Fight banner.

Artur Kyshenko, despite difficulties in ranking him because of his choice to fight at higher weights, has looked truly impressive of late. Getting settled in at Mike's Gym seems to really have helped his game, and the Ukrainian fighter was dominant against former divisional rankings staple Nieky Holzken (who, himself, is no longer ranked because of inactivity in this respective weight class).

Despite talk of retirement at the end of 2011 (and the fact that he may very well finish out the year with some Muay Thai bouts), John Wayne Parr blasted Mike Zambidis in Australia back in May. Parr put his Greek rival away in convincing fashion, as three knockdowns inside of one round left no doubt in who got the better of the fight trilogy. The Australian legend also just toppled Mostafa Abdollahi in a Muay Thai bout.

After years of toiling throughout the European scene, Abraham Roqueni has confirmed that he belongs among the top fighters in the middleweight division. Whatever misgivings fans may have about his February win over Andy Souwer, there is no denying the way that the Spanish fighter outclassed Gago Drago at It's Showtime Madrid.

A lull in activity has struck some of the fighters in the middle of our rankings, with Pajonsuk being removed from the It's Showtime Fast and Furious tournament, Yuichiro Nagashima focusing on professional wrestling, Murat Direkci having not competed, and so on.

A look at what's next for the middleweight division, as well as some notes on rankings, weight classes, and the like, after the jump.

What's next:

The next major event in the world of the middleweights will be the It's Showtime Fast and Furious 70 kg. tournament on September 24th in Brussels, Belgium. The preliminary round of that event offers Andy Souwer vs. Harut Grigorian, Artur Kyshenko vs. Gago Drago, Chris Ngimbi vs. Murat Direkci, and Robin van Roosmalen vs. Chahid Oulad el Hadj.

Fans should also keep an eye on the Fight Code Rhino Series Round of 8, which is scheduled for October 15th in Marseilles, France. The 72.5 kg. tournament quarterfinals will see #6 Sudsakorn Sor. Klinmee vs. Halim Issaoui, #14 Armen Petrosyan vs Juri Bessmertny, #19 Dzhabar Askerov vs. Abdallah Mabel, and Bruno Franchi vs. Norbert Balogh.

There is also a K-1 MAX Japan tournament planned for later the year. As of the moment, it seems that it will probably be going down some time in September. That tournament will feature Yuichiro Nagashima, Hiroki Nakajima, and plenty more. Whatever clarification the planned tournament may bring regarding domestic standings in Japan, expect it to have some impact on the lower end of our rankings, at the very least.

John Wayne Parr is scheduled to meet fellow Australian, Frank Giorgi in a Muay Thai bout on September 3rd.

Mike Zambidis will be competing in Russia again some time later this year; word has been that he's likely to face Batu Khasikov.

In addition to his Fight Code bouts, Dzhabar Askerov has advanced into the final of the 70 kg. tournament at Tatneft Cup 2011. He'll be likely to take home that tournament win later this year.

Prospect watchers: look out for the Team Slamm 70 kg. tournament in Suriname later this month. Don't expect any of the fighters to end up on our rankings immediately, but the tournament includes Anthony Kane, Ajay Balgobind (he's beaten Robin van Roosmalen), Italian prospect Alessandro Campagna, and Antoine Mandela. In truth, the other half of the field is great too.

Ranking-related information

A word on weight classes: In the absence of unified weight classes in kickboxing, divisions are being identified as appropriately as possible. Identification of divisions is informed by both convention among some kickboxing organizations and analogous weight classes in professional boxing (very loosely informed, in many cases, on the latter - i.e. Giorgio Petrosyan would be the top super welterweight in the world if really adhering to that standard). Furthermore, weight classes themselves will evolve in kickboxing, and rankings may need to be adjusted down the line to reflect that.

Fighter activity: A fighter must compete in a given division within the last year to be considered for that division's rankings. Those with fights scheduled just outside the year time frame may still be included.

The matter of Muay Thai: Those fighters who have competed primarily under a Muay Thai rule set will still be included if they've had sufficient activity in the kickboxing arena as well. A fighter's ranking isn't going to be driven by Muay Thai bouts, but in the event that they are already present on the rankings, it's difficult to say Muay Thai results won't inform our conception of where that fighter stands.