1 Josh Warrington, 31-1-1 (8)
Known as the “Leeds Warrior,” Warrington has emerged as one of the best featherweight fighters in the world in recent years, winning the IBF belt twice and beating a number of names along the way. Notable wins include wins against Carl Frampton, Kiko Martinez (twice) and Kid Galahad.
2 Henry Wharton, 27-3-1 (20)
Tough and physical with a deadly left hook, Wharton fought both Chris Eubank and Nigel Benn in world titles, as well as Robin Reid, but lost all three. However, he won the British, Commonwealth and European super-middle belts.
3 Crawford Ashley, 33-10-1 (28)
A British light-heavyweight champion, Ashley fought Michael Nunn and Virgil Hill for world titles in 1993 and 1995 respectively but lost both. After those bouts, he would win the Lonsdale belt again and also beat Roberto Dominguez for the European title in ’97 (the belt he won a second time the following year).
4 George “Kid” Nicholson, 58-41-7 (7)
During 113 professional fights, Nicholson, a professional athlete from 1919 to 1934, fought many of the best domestic featherweights of the period. He lost a British title match to Alf “Kid” Pattenden in 1928, but let Teddy Baldock lose his first in ’26.
5 Carl Johanneson, 32-7 (20)
After spending the first part of his professional career in the US, Johanneson returned to England in 2004 and two years later won the British super featherweight title, a belt he defended three times. He also fought for the European title in 2007.
6 Denzil Browne, 22-8-2 (9)
Browne, a cruiser athlete throughout his career, was stopped by Dennis Andries after 11 rounds in a British title match in 1995. He later won the Center Area title twice. .
7 Nicola Adams, 5-0-1 (3)
Celebrated more for her amateur achievements than she is in professional play, however, Adams has won five of six fights as a professional athlete. and beat Isabel Millan in 2018 to win the WBO flyweight belt.
8 Jack Bateson 17-1 (4)
A newcomer to the roster, Bateson won 17 straight professional matches before being stopped by Shabaz Masoud in the final round of his final bout. Before that, he defeated Ramez Mahmood to win the British super chicken title in 2021.
9 Nick Manners, 11-5-1 (10)
Heavyweight-lightweight manners ended 10 of his 11 professional wins over long distances. He won the Central Area title in 1997, beating Paul Mason in four rounds, then stopping Kevin Burton in one round on his first defense.
10 Johnny McGowan, 11-11-1 (13)
McGowan turned pro in 1946 and won the Central Area light-heavyweight belt in 1951 with Jimmy Carroll’s seventh-round retirement match.
