YAHOO SPORTS Although only one of them makes it on to his official record, Terence Crawford had two big decision wins this calendar year, both of which will define his legacy.

The first of the two decisions was recorded in September and was unanimous. There were two scorecards of 115-113 and one of 116112, and together they confirmed Crawford’s superiority over Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, landing the Nebraskan four super middleweight world titles: the WBC, the IBF, the WBO and the WBA.

Those who watched the fight did not need confirmation from three judges to corroborate what they had seen, yet the same could not be said for Crawford. As confident as he was, Crawford needed the win over Alvarez to be made official in order for him to be able to call himself a world champion in five weight divisions. He needed the confirmation from three judges to prove to the world what he had been saying all along.

Truth be told, if you were watching closely and were quiet enough to listen, there were always signs. There were signs Crawford was different, or special, back when he was a shy and skinny lightweight, and similarly there were signs he was too good for Alvarez early on in their super middleweight fight in Las Vegas. Always a step ahead, it seemed, Crawford wasted no time toying with Alvarez, setting traps and waiting for his Mexican opponent to fall into one. Then, the second he did, Crawford would pick him off with sharp counters, spin him and return to a position of control, matador- like. With this kind of control, Crawford had soon made a mockery of the size difference — Crawford had moved up from super welterweight, while Alvarez was the undisputed super middleweight champion — and began to grow, both in stature and strength, as the bout progressed. Toward the end, in fact, it was actually Crawford, the smaller man, who was landing the bigger, more hurtful blows, and every time he did you saw the impact on the reddening face of Alvarez. Often Alvarez could be seen shaking his head when a punch connected, annoyed to have been hit by it. On other occasions, he would shake his head in a manner that suggested confusion rather than annoyance, as if to say, “How did he hit me with that?”

The short answer: Terence Crawford is a genius. He is a genius whose genius only becomes apparent to us and to his opponents when trading punches with fighters considered his equal, both in terms of talent and intelligence. It is then we get to see just how good Crawford is in the ring. It is then we understand how even among geniuses, there is someone at the top of the class; someone finding new angles; someone whose brain is forever young, sharp and creative.

Now the body, of course, that’s another thing. Crawford’s, at the age of 38, is quite different than it was 10 years ago, as is to be expected. It is heavier, broader and better equipped to bear both the weight of expectation and countless world title belts. It is now also a bigger target, one that has already been hit a fair amount in 42 professional fights and many more as an amateur. It remains an elusive target, of that there is no doubt, but still it keeps count, still it records every punch, and still it carries a price.

The same is true of the head, which contains the Crawford brain. That too has been knocked about and that too can only offer so much protection to the thing that makes Crawford so special and different from the rest. Perhaps, given his intelligence, he knows this only too well. Perhaps an awareness of it was the inspiration for Crawford’s second big decision win in 2025.

This one, not a fight per se, took place on Dec. 17 and came as a genuine surprise. Even at 38, nobody could have predicted that Terence Crawford, the man of the hour, would suddenly announce his retirement from the sport just three months after the biggest win of his career. But that is precisely what he did. He called it a day. In some respects, too, the announcement of Crawford’s retirement proved a bigger shock than seeing him have his way with Alvarez in Las Vegas. After all, for so long “Bud” had waited for his breakout moment to become a star, and yet now, having finally gotten it, he was taking his leave with the sound of applause still ringing in his ears.

“I spent my whole life chasing something,” Crawford, 42-0 (31 KOs), said in a statement. “Not belts, not money, not headlines, but that feeling — the one you get when the world doubts you, but you keep showing up and you keep proving everyone wrong.

“This sport gave me everything. I fought for my family, I fought for my city, I fought for the kid I used to be, the one that had nothing but a dream and a pair of gloves. I did it all my way.

“I gave this sport every breath I have, every spar, every triumph, every ounce of my heart. I’ve made peace with what’s next. Now, it’s time.”

It won’t have been easy, that decision. It never is. But for Crawford to acknowledge the future when blinded by the bright lights of the present is further evidence of his ability to stay one step ahead, not only of opponents but of a sport adept at convincing its victims to stick around for just one more.

Unlike in September, when he required three judges to verify what he had achieved, Crawford is now making his own decisions and taking matters into his own hands. It is for that reason he is different. It is for that reason he is great. It is for that reason he is Uncrowned 2025 Fighter of the Year.

2. Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez

The scary thing about Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez is that if he decided to follow Crawford’s lead and retire from the sport tomorrow, he would have already compiled a legacy impressive enough to take him to the International Boxing Hall of Fame. To have done so at the tender age of 25 is quite remarkable.

Better yet, Rodriguez, despite all he has accomplished at such a young age, shows no signs of letting up. In fact, this year he has only enhanced both his legacy and his reputation. In July, he added the WBO super flyweight title to his WBC version when he stopped Phumelela Cafu in 10 rounds. Then, in November, he produced one of the performances of the year to stop Fernando Martinez, also inside 10 rounds.

3. Dmitry Bivol

Russia’s Dmitry Bivol will argue that his 2025 has, in some respects, been similar to his 2024, only with one key difference: This time he got the decision.

Yes, 2025 was the year Bivol, the world light heavyweight champion, was rewarded for all his good work against Artur Beterbiev to the tune of a majority decision. That, as far as Bivol is concerned, made up for the majority decision that went against him following their first encounter in 2024, and it also ensured that he and Beterbiev are now one win apiece in their rivalry.

Even better, for Bivol, the performance in that February rematch revealed new dimensions to his game and suggested he had finally figured out how to stay one step ahead of his countryman. At times he was brave, especially early. Later on, he was simply masterful.

4. David Benavidez

David Benavidez isn’t the only fighter to go by the nickname “Monster,” but it is fair to say that few embody the character better than him.

To date, Benavidez has finished 25 of his 31 professional wins inside the distance, and most of the time he does so by stalking, suffocating and ultimately breaking the spirit of his opponent. He did this again twice this year. The first opponent on the receiving end was David Morrell, an unbeaten Cuban who survived 12 rounds with Benavidez but couldn’t win enough of them to upset the WBC light heavyweight champion’s momentum. After that came Anthony Yarde, who tried to move around Benavidez but soon ran out of room, ideas and breath. He was eventually stopped in Round 7, the image of which only strengthened the belief that from Benavidez, the monster, there is no getting away.

5. Naoya Inoue

Naoya Inoue, also a “Monster,” deserves recognition this year if only for fighting four times. That, in an era when most champions fight just once or twice, should be commended and indeed encouraged.

In the case of Inoue, the world’s best super bantamweight, the year started with a fourth-round stoppage win over Ye Joon Kim in January. He then followed that routine assignment with a far more difficult fight against Roman Cardenas, who not only asked questions of Inoue but managed to drop the Japanese star in Round 2. Five rounds later, it was Cardenas who found himself on the deck, and in the eighth he was stopped.

After that, Inoue boxed Murodjon Akhmadaliev, his WBA mandatory challenger, and was again victorious, this time by unanimous decision. He then finished a productive year with a decision win over Mexico’s David Picasso in December.

Honorable mentions:

Devin Haney Oleksandr Usyk Shakur Stevenson

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