Ranking Britain’s top 10 heavyweights after Dave Allen’s heartbreaking loss

The final months of 2025 will see plenty of British heavyweight action, with boxing’s most glamorous division throwing up some mouthwatering clashes.

WBA interim heavyweight champion Fabio Wardley takes on his WBO equivalent Joseph Parker live on DAZN PPV on Saturday October 25, the same day Frazer Clarke faces Jeamie TKV for the British heavyweight title.

Derek Chisora and Moses Itauma are set to star on a Queensberry show in December, whilst Matchroom heavyweight Johnny Fisher also looks likely to fight in the final month of 2025. Even former world champion Anthony Joshua is now rumoured to potentially fight before the end of the year.

Taking into account inactivity, recent form, achievements, records, and standing in the world of boxing, here are the best 10 British heavyweights currently fighting.

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Honourable mentions

As one of the most fertile breeding grounds for boxing in the world, Britain has consistently produced top heavyweights. There are three former world champion Brits still active in the division, highlighting the strength of heavyweights from these shores.

That means some fighters have had to miss out. Dave Allen’s resurgence was curtailed by defeat to Arslanbek Makhmudov on Saturday, making it difficult to include the “White Rhino”. Richard Riakporhe missed out on a world title at cruiserweight and has fought just once since moving to heavyweight, meaning his credentials are currently untested above 200lb.

Joe Joyce has four defeats in his last five fights, and at 40, his big wins and achievements are starting to count for very little in comparison to his contemporaries.

10. David Adeleye

The most recent holder of the British heavyweight title, David Adeleye tried to make the step up to world contention but was soundly beaten by top contender Filip Hrgovic. It should be said that Adeleye’s performance was commendable, but highlighted the gulf in quality between British-level fighters and those in the conversation for world title shots.

The fact that Adeleye did not look too convincing during his win over Jeamie TKV in the fight preceding the Hrgovic bout also works against the 28-year-old. A loss to Fabio Wardley in 2023 further demonstrates that Adeleye is some way off the higher reaches of this list, but wins over TKV and Solomon Dacres prove that he is a cut above most domestic-level fighters.

9. Frazer Clarke

Another fighter vanquished by Wardley, Frazer Clarke is still rebuilding from his loss to the now-WBA interim champion. A split-decision draw between Clarke and Wardley at the start of 2024 led to a rematch in October of that same year, with the latter breaking the former’s jaw in a first-round win.

At 34 and with a record of just 9-1-1 (7 KOs) Clarke needs to crack on if he is to live up to the potential suggested by his bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics. That amateur pedigree, and one fewer loss on his record, has him just above Adeleye – but failure to defeat TKV in a convincing manner for the British title on October 25 would lead many to question Clarke’s continued growth in boxing’s biggest division.

8. Dillian Whyte

‘The Bodysnatcher’ is another fighter with questions hanging over him. A surprise opponent for Moses Itauma in August, no one was more shocked than Dillian Whyte by the manner of the wonderkid’s win. The 20-year-old blitzed the veteran 17 years his elder in the first round out in Saudi Arabia, completely negating the argument that Whyte’s experience would ask questions of Itauma.

Whyte, 31-4 (21 KOs), looked past his best, but his previous wins still means he should be held in higher regard than both Clarke and Adeleye. However, a sub-standard performance in his next fight would lead to strong calls for Whyte to call it a day. At 37, he has already dismissed retirement talk after the Itauma loss, but we are surely looking at the final bouts of Whyte’s career.

7. Lawrence Okolie

A two-division world champion thanks to the newly-formed bridgerweight class, Lawrence Okolie has snuck into the heavyweight division and fared well. Not a fan favourite due to his clinch-heavy style, Okolie has filled out his 6ft 5in frame to good effect.

Still only two fights into his heavyweight campaign, ‘The Sauce’ finds himself ranked at number one by the WBC – meaning only interim champion Agit Kabayel is viewed as a stronger contender in the eyes of the sanctioning body.

The fact that Okolie could feasibly have another world title shot by the end of 2026 means he is positioned as strongly as any British heavyweight, helping him to seventh spot in our list. Whether the chips fall in his favour remains to be seen – but a retirement for Oleksandr Usyk could well see Okolie face Kabayel for a portion of the world title.

6. Fabio Wardley

Arguably only Fabio Wardley is better positioned for a world title push than Okolie when it comes to British heavyweights – at least when considering rankings and sanctioning body politics.

Wardley is taking a gamble facing Joseph Parker, live on DAZN PPV later this month. If he is victorious in defending his WBA interim title whilst taking the WBO version off Parker, then Wardley will have effectively jumped the queue when it comes to a shot at Usyk.

Perhaps Wardley will be even more fortunate and see Usyk vacate his title in order to pursue more lucrative opportunities, which would cause the 30-year-old to be elevated to full champion.

However, Wardley, 19-0-1 (18 KOs), is risking his position by taking such a dangerous foe in Parker, especially considering he required a punch from the gods to defeat Justis Huni back in June.

A loss would have him tumble out of contention, but likely wouldn’t impact his standing too much when it comes to the British scene.

5. Derek Chisora

‘Del Boy’ boasts both a strong position and a strong resume in comparison to his British peers. At one point in 2025, Derek Chisora had a world title shot thanks to winning an IBF eliminator, which would have set up the 41-year-old for a dream 50th fight.

However, IBF champion Daniel Dubois opted to unify with Usyk, before the sanctioning body ordered another world title eliminator that leaves Chisora’s position as their highest-ranked contender in jeopardy.

World title talk has faded for Chisora, who is now looking forward to his 50th fight in Manchester on Saturday, December 13. An opponent is yet to have been named, with Deontay Wilder, Whyte, and Jarrell Miller all mentioned. After four losses in two years, Chisora is still hanging about – and likely to give anyone in the heavyweight division a proper go.

4. Moses Itauma

Chisora has not been afraid to admit that he has avoided Moses Itauma, stating that the money involved did not make the risk of fighting boxing’s next big thing worth it.

Itauma seems pre-destined for greatness if you listen to his camp, fans, promoter, and huge sections of the media. Arguably no other British heavyweight currently generates as much clamour as the 20-year-old.

Ranked at number one by both the WBO and WBA, Itauma is firmly in world title contention – even if he is still a little green based on his record of 13-0 (11 KOs) and a total of just 26 rounds completed.

Whyte represented the biggest scalp claimed by the current Commonwealth heavyweight champion, but in reality the grizzled veteran was meant to serve as a bigger test of Itauma’s credentials. Itauma is certainly passing the eye test, making it feel like a matter of when, not if, he is viewed as Britain’s best heavyweight.

3. Anthony Joshua

It has been over a year since Anthony Joshua lost to Dubois at Wembley, meaning that the former world champion has been removed from the sanctioning bodies’ rankings.

Still harbouring ambitions of becoming a three-time world champion, Joshua underwent elbow surgery in the summer whilst targeting a return in the winter of 2025. There are some suggestions that ‘AJ’ is still attempting to fight before the end of the calendar year, but it appears we will have to wait and see what he has left in the tank in early 2026.

With a record of 28-4 (25 KOs) Joshua has proved that he can bounce back from defeats, but at 35 time is running out. A combination of Itauma’s unproven credentials and Joshua’s star power just about keeps the Olympic gold medallist above the young pretender to the throne. The fact that Joshua is constantly called out by heavyweights from all over the world highlights that he is still a prize draw for many fighters, and that pedigree is reflected with his third-place ranking.

2. Daniel Dubois

Dubois could have had it all if he wasn’t comfortably beaten by Usyk under the Wembley arch in July. It was Usyk’s decision to rematch with Tyson Fury that enabled Dubois to be a world champion in the first place – the Ukrainian vacating the IBF strap that saw the Brit’s interim status elevated to a full title.

To Dubois’ credit, he made Joshua look aged and weathered to defend his crown last September, but injury prevented him from taking on another contender in Parker. Usyk came calling for his belt back, and in five rounds ‘The Cat’ had all the marbles once again at heavyweight.

At 28, Dubois, 22-3 (21 KOs) is young enough to come back to world title contention, and he has already decided to plough ahead by accepting an IBF final eliminator shot against Frank Sanchez, but only after a host of names turned down the chance.

Victory over the Cuban would bring Dubois straight back into the frame for the IBF belt – another factor that explains why he is second on our list.

1. Tyson Fury

By December, Tyson Fury will be in the same predicament as rival Joshua – unceremoniously dumped from the world rankings after a year of inactivity. A frequent declarer of retirement, some of the sanctioning bodies have already removed Fury as they view him as retired. However, his promoter Frank Warren believes he will return to the ring in 2026, meaning it is difficult to ignore the ‘Gypsy King’.

Still the most convincing of Britain’s three world heavyweight champions in the 2020s, Fury gave Usyk the closest two fights of his career during the initial fight for undisputed status and the following rematch.

Fury’s name still holds weight in the boxing world, as evidenced by the fact that Usyk called out his old rival for a trilogy bout. Usyk knows that another fight with Fury could generate a lot of money, but another career break for the Brit makes it unlikely for the ‘Gypsy King’ to be viewed properly as a world title contender.

It speaks volumes that a fight between Joshua and Fury is still being discussed and touted a decade on from its first mention – it speaks even louder that it would arguably be the biggest fight of 2026 despite both fighters being far from their heydays.

Fury, 34-2-1 (24 KOs), is another that will likely walk away from boxing sooner rather than later, but right now he should still be viewed as the best current British heavyweight.

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