British Boxing Board introduce brand-new weight class

New weight category designed to bridge the gap between light-heavyweight and cruiserweight

By Tim Rickson16 Sept 2026 · 2 min read

The BBBofC — British Boxing Board introduce brand-new weight classBBBofC

Light-cruiserweight will initially be available across Area, English, Celtic and British titles, effective from January 1st

The British Boxing Board of Control has now confirmed they are introducing a brand-new championship weight class designed to bridge the biggest gap between two divisions.

There's currently 25lbs separating the 175-pound light-heavyweight and 200-lbs cruiserweight limits.

The new 187-lbs division will be named 'Light-cruiserweight' and will initially be available across Area, English, Celtic and British title fights.

The BBBofC announced, “The British Boxing Board of Control will be introducing a new Championship Weight Class with effect from 1st January 2027.

“The new division will be placed between the current Light Heavyweight division of 12st 7lbs, and the Cruiserweight division of 14st 4lbs.

“Light Cruiserweight will have a Championship limit of 13st 5lbs (187lbs), and as such will bridge the current largest weight gap between two divisions in the sport (25lbs) and will be available across Area, English, Celtic and British Titles."

Boxing was recently introduced to another new division, closely linked to the same weight categories.

The WBC created the bridgerweight category in 2020 to accommodate fighters between cruiserweight and heavyweight, but the concept has never been universally accepted.

The WBA initially introduced its own version of bridgerweight before backtracking and abandoning the division in June 2026.

Starting another weight class now, when confusion already reigns over the Ali Act and the future of bridgerweight remains uncertain, may not be ideal.

However, there is one significant difference - light-cruiserweight will remain on UK shores, rather than attempting to enforce it upon the world.

If light-cruiserweight stays exclusively regional to the UK, the rest of boxing can carry on regardless.

The only snag would be where would the light-cruiserweight fighters in the UK rank in the worldwide cruiser or heavyweight rankings.

British fighters will have to decide, when they reach world level, whether to compete at 175 or 200 pounds, potentially causing difficulties to the ranking systems as well as their own training regimes and strict dieting routines.

Historically, boxing has always introduced new weight classes when there has been a need for one. Over a century ago, the sport started with just eight divisions, which clearly needed expanded over time for safety reasons. It wasn't until 1959 that boxing began to expand on those original eight weights, and there are now over 17 different divisions in boxing.