- Julio César Chávez Junior is the winningest boxer on the list with 107 wins.
- Pernell Whitaker captured the most titles with three, winning the IBF, WBC, and WBA belts.
- Whitaker also had the fewest wins with 40 career wins.
Often tagged as one of the most stacked weight classes in boxing, the lightweight division has produced several of the sport’s biggest stars. The landscape of the 135-pound division is still loaded with talents as names like Gervonta Davis, Vasiliy Lomachenko, Shakur Stevenson, and Leo Santa Cruz are the betting favourites among fans when looking at boxing odds.
But before this new generation of top names, who were their predecessors who left their respective marks in the division and pushed it to prominence? Find out here.
Top Lightweight Boxing Champions of All Time
| Boxer Name | Career Record | World Titles Won | Years as Champion |
| Julio Cesar Chavez | 107 wins, 6 losses, and 2 draws | WBA Lightweight title and WBC Lightweight title | 1987 to 1989 |
| Pernell Whitaker | 40 wins, 4 losses, and 1 draw | IBF Lightweight title, WBC Lightweight title, and WBA Lightweight title | 1989 to 1992 |
| Roberto Duran | 103 wins and 16 losses | WBA lightweight title and WBC Lightweight title | 1972 to 1979 |
| Benny Leonard | 90 wins, 6 losses, and 1 draw | World Lightweight title | 1916 to 1924 |
| Freddie Welsh | 74 wins, 5 losses, and 7 draws | World Lightweight title | 1914 to 1915 |
Julio Cesar Chavez
One of the most legendary names in boxing history is Julio César Chávez, who became a three-division world champion. Among the divisions he ruled was the lightweight division, where he captured the WBA and WBC world titles.
#MondayDefense Julio Cesar Chavez made it look so easy pic.twitter.com/7qzcT1nsTM
— World Boxing Council (@WBCBoxing) January 3, 2022
Although he only fought three times in the weight class, Chávez swept all three of his opponents in two years of supremacy before vacating both titles in 1989, moving up to the light welterweight division, and capturing three more world titles.
Pernell Whitaker
The 1990s version of Floyd Mayweather Jr. is Pernell Whitaker, who was a defensive specialist and a cerebral type of fighter. His incredible elusiveness helped capture him the IBF, WBC, and WBA world titles with multiple title defences.
Pernell "Sweet Pea" Whitaker would have been 56 today.
A defensive mastermind 💨 pic.twitter.com/xxSCq0bhbO
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) January 2, 2020
Whitaker took over the 135-pound division for three years and amassed a record of nine wins and only one loss. His defeat was courtesy of José Luis Ramírez who gave him a close and controversial split-decision loss. He eventually fought in the higher divisions and added three more world titles to his resume.
Roberto Duran
With an undefeated 13-0 record in world title fights in the lightweight division, Roberto Durán has cracked a spot in the list of the top boxing champions. He was an unstoppable force in the 135-pound division and captured the WBA and WBC titles.
Durán not only secured those titles, but he was also successful in keeping them by fending off the challenges from different challengers. A few of his most notable wins were against Ken Buchanan, Jimmy Robertson, Ray Lampkin, Edwin Viruet, and Esteban de Jesús.
Benny Leonard
Benny Leonard dethroned Freddie Welsh in 1916 to become the best lightweight boxer of his time. Since that title triumph, he won nine successive world title fights in the division to keep his status as the best lightweight boxer in the world.
What’s more impressive about his eight-year reign was he was fighting up and down weight classes but still managed to showcase incredible performances, which made him an all-time great.
Freddie Welsh
Freddie Welsh only had over a year of reign in the lightweight division from 1914 to 1915, but during this stretch, he successfully defended his golden strap eight times to retain his status as the best 135-pounder in the world.
Welsh lost the title in March 1916 to Benny Leonard, but instantly reclaimed it three months later. Before officially retiring from the sport, he won two more world title fights until he ran into Leonard for the second time, formally making him pass the torch to him in May 1917.