Light flyweight, also known as junior flyweight or super strawweight, is a weight class in boxing.
Professional boxing The weight limit at light flyweight in professional boxing is 108 pounds (49 kilograms). When New York legalized boxing in 1920, the law stipulated a "junior flyweight" class, with a weight limit of 99 pounds. When the National Boxing Association was formed in 1921, it also recognized this weight class. However, on January 19, 1922, the NBA decided to withdraw recognition of the junior flyweight division. On December 31, 1929, the New York State Athletic Commission also abolished the junior flyweight class. No champion had been crowned in this division prior to its abolition.
The World Boxing Council (WBC) decided to resurrect this division in the 1970s. The first champion in this division was Franco Udella, who won the WBC title in 1975. The World Boxing Association also crowned its first champion in 1975, when Jaime Rios defeated Rigoberto Marcano via fifteen-round decision. The first International Boxing Federation champion was Dodie Boy Peñalosa, who won the belt in 1983.
The first light flyweight "superfight" took place on March 13, 1993, when Michael Carbajal, the IBF champion, knocked out WBC champion Humberto González to unify the championship. Their rematch, on February 19, 1994, was the first time a light flyweight fighter (Carbajal) made a million dollar purse.
Current world champions
Sanctioning bodyReign beganChampionRecordDefensesWBADecember 17, 2025René Santiago16–4 (9 KO)1WBCMarch 15, 2026Shokichi Iwata16–2 (13 KO)1IBFJune 19, 2025Thanongsak Simsri40–1 (35 KO)2WBOMarch 13, 2025René Santiago16–4 (9 KO)2
Current The Ring world rankings
As of December 28, 2025.
Keys: Current The Ring world champion
RankNameRecord Title(s)C1René Santiago15–4 (9 KO)WBO, WBA2Carlos Cañizales28–3–1 (20 KO)WBC3Thanongsak Simsri39–1 (34 KO)IBF4Kyosuke Takami10–1 (8 KO)5Shokichi Iwata14–2 (11 KO)6Regie Suganob16–1 (6 KO)7Christian Araneta25–3 (6 KO)8Erick Badillo17–0 (8 KO)9Masataka Taniguchi19–5 (13 KO)10Sivenathi Nontshinga13–2 (10 KO)
Amateur boxing At the Summer Olympic Games, the division is defined as up to 49 kilograms.
Olympic champions
1968 – 1972 – 1976 – 1980 – 1984 – 1988 – 1992 – 1996 – 2000 – 2004 – 2008 – 2012 – 2016 –
European champions
1969 – György Gedó (HUN) 1971 – György Gedó (HUN) 1973 – Vladislav Sasypko (URS) 1975 – Aleksandr Tkachenko (URS) 1977 – Henryk Średnicki (POL) 1979 – Shamil Sabirov (URS) 1981 – Ismail Mustafov (BUL) 1983 – Ismail Mustafov (BUL) 1985 – René Breitbarth (GDR) 1987 – Nszan Munczian (URS) 1989 – Ivailo Marinov (BUL) 1991 – Ivailo Marinov (BUL) 1993 – Daniel Petrov (BUL) 1996 – Daniel Petrov (BUL) 1998 – Sergey Kazakov (RUS) 2000 – Valeriy Sydorenko (UKR) 2002 – Sergey Kazakov (RUS) 2004 – Sergey Kazakov (RUS) 2006 – David Ayrapetyan (RUS) 2008 – Hovhannes Danielyan (ARM) 2010 – Paddy Barnes (IRL) 2011 – Salman Alizade (AZE) 2013 – David Ayrapetyan (RUS)
Pan American champions
1971 – Rafael Carbonell (CUB) 1975 – Jorge Hernández (CUB) 1979 – Héctor Ramírez (CUB) 1983 – Rafael Ramos (PUR) 1987 – Luis Román Rolón (PUR) 1991 – Rogelio Marcelo (CUB) 1995 – Edgar Velázquez (VEN) 1999 – Maikro Romero (CUB) 2003 – Yan Bartelemí Varela (CUB) 2007 – Luis Yáñez (USA) 2011 – Joselito Velázquez (MEX)
Notable light flyweights Iván Calderón Michael Carbajal Jung-Koo Chang Luis Estaba Leo Gámez Humberto González Yoko Gushiken Louisa Hawton Yuh Myung-woo Donnie Nietes Saman Sorjaturong Román González Naoya Inoue Ryoichi Taguchi Adrián Hernández Ricardo López Franco Udella
References
External links
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