Boxing in 2026: Four burning questions surrounding the sport's biggest stars ahead of a busy year

The new year has the potential to be a massive one in boxing. Of course, that could be said of many years where the sport has still managed to disappoint.

Fortunately for boxing fans, the past handful of years has provided more high-level fights between the best in the world than the two decades prior. That lends some reason to believe 2026 can deliver on the promising spot boxing was left in after 2025.

With that in mind, the CBS Sports boxing experts were asked four big questions about what the year will look like. From the biggest fight of the year, to who will the most and least disappointing fighters, we've broken it all down with predictions on what fans can expect over the coming 12 months.

Let's dive right in now to the questions and predictions from Brian Campbell and Brent Brookhouse.

1. What ends up being the biggest fight of the year?

Campbell: Devin Haney vs. Ryan Garcia II

From the standpoint of hype and reality TV-style theatrics throughout the build, this one could very well take the cake. What needs to happen first, of course, is for Garcia to defeat WBC welterweight titleholder Mario Barrios in February to make sure this rematch would be a unification fight (after Haney defeated Brian Norman Jr. last year for the WBO title). But when Garcia and Haney first met in April 2024, few could've predicted the multi-year circus that would come from the fight, which began with Garcia's bizarre behavior on social media and continued through him missing weight (while chugging a beer bottle on the scales). Haney was dropped three times in a unanimous decision loss that was ultimately ruled a no contest after Garcia failed a postfight drug test for ostarine and led to a lawsuit from Haney for assault. Even though Garcia followed his one-year drug suspension and lengthy mental health layoff with a loss to Rolando Romero, it didn't stop boxing from rewarding him with another title fight. And it won't stop his must-see rematch from drawing huge attention and ticket sales between two of the most viral boxers on the planet.  

Brookhouse: Naoya Inoue vs. Junto Nakatani 

Hey, the world is bigger than the United States! Inoue vs. Nakatani would have all of Japan watching, plus boxing hardcores around the world. This battle between two Japanese megastars has been anxiously awaited and both men did what they needed in 2025 to finally make it happen. The event will be a widely-watched success while also having significant impacts on the sport's pound-for-pound rankings. Inoue currently sits No. 1 in the CBS Sports pound-for-pound rankings, while Nakatani sits at No. 8. Compare that to Shakur Stevenson vs. Teofimo Lopez Jr., which is another massive fight, but only features fighters ranked No. 7 and 10, respectively, and you can see why I'm shading toward Inoue vs. Nakatani as the biggest fight of 2026. If Inoue wins, he clears another hurdle that only serves to increase his standing as the best fighter in the world. If Nakatani wins, he goes from star to megastar.

2. Who gets a breakout moment in 2026?

Campbell: Jaron "Boots" Ennis 

Despite becoming a unified champion at 147 pounds, Ennis never quite got the promotional push he deserved or the big-name opponents to prove himself against. That should change in 2026 as Ennis appears to be on a collision course to face fellow unbeaten Vergil Ortiz Jr. in a rare non-title bout that could crown the winner as the best fighter in the division. Not only would the dynamic Ennis likely earn a true breakout moment with a victory (he's an early 2-to-1 favorite) it would also catapult him into the title picture for future fights against titleholders like Xander Zayas, Sebastian Fundora and Bakhram Murtazaliev. This could be the year that Ennis finally becomes a household name in boxing, earning recognition along the way as one of the pound-for-pound best in the sport. It has truly been a long-time coming for the talented native of Philadelphia.

Brookhouse: Moses Itauma

Many feel that Itauma is the future of the heavyweight division, and there's plenty of reason to believe that will be the case. Itauma turned 21 on Dec. 28 and is already 13-0 with 11 knockouts, including a first-round TKO of longtime title contender Dillian Whyte this past August. Itauma has the chance to have a massive breakout moment when he faces Jermaine Franklin on March 28 in Manchester, England. Franklin went 12 rounds with Whyte in 2022, losing by majority decision, and with Anthony Joshua in 2023, losing by unanimous decision. It would be a massive statement if Itauma can finish off Franklin before the final bell. Beating Franklin is solid, stopping Franklin is a breakout moment for Itauma and serves to more quickly move him toward a shot to become world champion.

3. Which fighter fails to meet expectations this year?

Campbell: Canelo Alvarez

It will be most interesting to see which direction, in terms of matchmaking, that the 35-year-old Mexican icon takes in the aftermath of his undisputed super middleweight title loss to Terence Crawford in last fall's superfight. Alvarez, who recently had elbow surgery, is back training in the gym for a return, but it's not expected to be until the second half of the year. But given his age and the shameless nature in which he did everything in his power in recent years to avoid a fight against David Benavidez that would've arguably been the biggest in the entire sport, it's difficult to retain any kind of confidence that the four-division champion has the competitive fire remaining to challenge himself. Remember, Alvarez was on the one-yard line toward securing a fight last spring against Jake Paul until he switched gears and signed a multi-fight deal with Turki Alalshikh and Saudi Arabia. And given the fact that he is entering his 23rd year as a professional fighter, the years of Alvarez creating marquee events against dangerous opponents are likely behind him. 

Brookhouse: Oleksandr Usyk 

I hate to say anything bad about Usyk, who is maybe the greatest fighter of his generation. But the talk of facing Deontay Wilder is incredibly disappointing. Wilder was once the scariest fighter walking the planet, but he's so far past his prime that the idea of fighting the undisputed king of heavyweights (though he understandably doesn't care to jump through hoops to keep all four world titles) is laughable. In his recent meaningful fights, Wilder barely threw punches. Hoping to land one of a handful of punches and sleep Usyk is not a compelling reason to make a fight. If this is the path Usyk wants to navigate as he closes out his career, that's his right, but it's certainly disappointing in a way we don't expect from a fighter who has made a case as one of the best ever.

4. Is a new undisputed champion crowned? If so, who?

Campbell: Don't count out David Benavidez

Although Benavidez appears headed toward a May showdown at cruiserweight against unified champion Gilberto "Zurdo" Ramirez, the unbeaten "Mexican Monster" still holds the WBC title at 175 pounds. Dmitry Bivol, of course, fresh off splitting a pair of high-profile undisputed championship bouts with Artur Beterbiev, remains in possession of the other three. But there's some legitimate reasons to at least ponder whether Bivol, at 35, has already shown us how great he can be and could be on the start of a potential slide. Not only was Bivol forced to endure an incredible 24 rounds of action against Beterbiev, the hard-punching future Hall of Famer, he's coming off surgery last August to correct a back injury that has threatened his health from fight to fight for years. Bivol, who is expected to defend his belts against mandatory challenger Michael Eifert this spring upon his return, could very well find himself in a trilogy bout against Beterbiev, especially if that's what Alalshikh, boxing's chief financier, prefers. But a Bivol-Benavidez fight is not only a fresh matchup for the division, it's one of the best fights that can be made. And it's also one that is very winnable for the 29-year-old Benavidez, even if he comes in as the betting underdog.

Brookhouse: Jesse Rodriguez (maybe)

Looking at the title situations across the sport, it's hard to see anyone becoming a new undisputed champion. If Usyk fights Fabio Wardley, the winner (almost certainly Usyk) would accomplish the feat. That would make Usyk a three-time undisputed heavyweight champion, which seems silly when he hasn't lost a title in the ring. The easiest answer may be Rodriguez, who holds three junior bantamweight titles. Willibaldo Garcia holds the IBF title in the division. However, Rodriguez grabbing the fourth title at 115 pounds feels unlikely. Garcia was supposed to face Kenshiro Teraji in late December, but Garcia fell ill and the fight was scrapped. Eddie Hearn already said that Rodriguez would move to bantamweight if he couldn't quickly secure a fight with the winner of Garcia vs. Teraji. It's possible Rodriguez still makes that fight happens and becomes undisputed, but it feels like "Bam" heads up a division to keep his incredible momentum going rather than being an A-side sitting around waiting for a B-side to emerge for a four-belt fight to emerge.