The Ring magazine Fighter of the Year

The Ring magazine was established in 1922 and has named a Fighter of the Year since 1928, which this list covers. The award, selected by the magazine editors, is based on a boxer's performance in the ring.

Award winners
Numbers in brackets indicate the number of times a boxer has won the award by that year.

1920s

 * 1922: Harry Greb
 * 1923: Jack Dempsey
 * 1924: Harry Greb (2)
 * 1925: Paul Berlenbach
 * 1926: Gene Tunney
 * 1927: Mickey Walker
 * 1928: Gene Tunney (2)
 * 1929: Tommy Loughran

1930s

 * 1930: Max Schmeling
 * 1931: Tommy Loughran (2)
 * 1932: Jack Sharkey
 * 1933: no award given
 * 1934: Tony Canzoneri and Barney Ross
 * 1935: Barney Ross (2)
 * 1936: Joe Louis
 * 1937: Henry Armstrong
 * 1938: Joe Louis (2)
 * 1939: Joe Louis (3)

1940s

 * 1940: Billy Conn
 * 1941: Joe Louis (4)
 * 1942: Sugar Ray Robinson
 * 1943: Fred Apostoli
 * 1944: Beau Jack
 * 1945: Willie Pep
 * 1946: Tony Zale
 * 1947: Gus Lesnevich
 * 1948: Ike Williams
 * 1949: Ezzard Charles

1950s

 * 1950: Ezzard Charles (2)
 * 1951: Sugar Ray Robinson (2)
 * 1952: Rocky Marciano
 * 1953: Bobo Olson
 * 1954: Rocky Marciano (2)
 * 1955: Rocky Marciano (3)
 * 1956: Floyd Patterson
 * 1957: Carmen Basilio
 * 1958: Ingemar Johansson
 * 1959: Ingemar Johansson (2)

1960s

 * 1960: Floyd Patterson (2)
 * 1961: Joe Brown
 * 1962: Dick Tiger
 * 1963: Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali)
 * 1964: Emile Griffith
 * 1965: Dick Tiger (2)
 * 1966: Muhammad Ali (2) (originally not awarded; retroactively awarded in 2016)
 * 1967: Joe Frazier
 * 1968: Nino Benvenuti
 * 1969: José Nápoles

1970s

 * 1970: Joe Frazier (2)
 * 1971: Joe Frazier (3)
 * 1972: Muhammad Ali (3) and Carlos Monzón
 * 1973: George Foreman
 * 1974: Muhammad Ali (4)
 * 1975: Muhammad Ali (5)
 * 1976: George Foreman (2)
 * 1977: Carlos Zarate
 * 1978: Muhammad Ali (6)
 * 1979: Sugar Ray Leonard

1980s

 * 1980: Thomas Hearns
 * 1981: Sugar Ray Leonard (2) and Salvador Sánchez
 * 1982: Larry Holmes
 * 1983: Marvin Hagler
 * 1984: Thomas Hearns (2)
 * 1985: Marvin Hagler (2) and   Donald Curry
 * 1986: Mike Tyson
 * 1987: Evander Holyfield
 * 1988: Mike Tyson (2)
 * 1989: Pernell Whitaker

1990s

 * 1990: Julio César Chávez
 * 1991: James Toney
 * 1992: Riddick Bowe
 * 1993: Michael Carbajal
 * 1994: Roy Jones Jr.
 * 1995: Oscar De La Hoya
 * 1996: Evander Holyfield (2)
 * 1997: Evander Holyfield (3)
 * 1998: Floyd Mayweather Jr.
 * 1999: Paulie Ayala

2000s

 * 2000: Félix Trinidad
 * 2001: Bernard Hopkins
 * 2002: Vernon Forrest
 * 2003: James Toney (2)
 * 2004: Glen Johnson
 * 2005: Ricky Hatton
 * 2006: Manny Pacquiao
 * 2007: Floyd Mayweather Jr. (2)
 * 2008: Manny Pacquiao (2)
 * 2009: Manny Pacquiao (3)

2010s

 * 2010: Sergio Martínez
 * 2011: Andre Ward
 * 2012: Juan Manuel Márquez
 * 2013: Adonis Stevenson
 * 2014: Sergey Kovalev
 * 2015: Tyson Fury
 * 2016: Carl Frampton
 * 2017: Vasiliy Lomachenko
 * 2018: Oleksandr Usyk
 * 2019: Canelo Álvarez

2020s

 * 2020: Tyson Fury (2) and Teófimo López
 * 2021: Canelo Álvarez (2)
 * 2022: Dmitry Bivol
 * 2023: Naoya Inoue

Fighter of the Decade

 * 1910s: Sam Langford
 * 1920s: Benny Leonard
 * 1930s: Henry Armstrong
 * 1940s: Sugar Ray Robinson
 * 1950s: Sugar Ray Robinson (2)
 * 1960s: Muhammad Ali
 * 1970s: Roberto Durán
 * 1980s: Sugar Ray Leonard
 * 1990s: Roy Jones Jr.
 * 2000s: Manny Pacquiao
 * 2010s: Floyd Mayweather Jr.