Rafael Espinoza will defend his WBO featherweight title against Sergio Chirino on Friday (ESPN+, 7 p.m. ET) in the main event of Top Rank at Fontainebleau in Las Vegas. Espinoza has won eight of his last 10 fights by stoppage, including an impressive majority decision over Robeisy Ramirez for the belt. But is he the best fighter in the 126-pound class?

Gervonta “Tank” Davis defeated Frank Martin on June 15 in an eighth-round KO victory and is now moving on to bigger and better things. That could be a fight with fellow lightweight champion Vasily Lomachenko. Could this fight happen in the future?

In the heavyweight division, Oleksandr Usyk will defend his undisputed heavyweight title, which he won by defeating Tyson Fury in May. Will Fury be able to exact revenge in the December rematch? What about Zhilei Zhang? Will he be able to fight Joseph Parker again to avenge his loss to Parker in March?

And can Nate Diaz beat former UFC fighter Jorge Masvidal in the ring?

Mike Coppinger, Nick Parkinson and Brett Okamoto answer these and other questions as they try to separate what’s real from what’s not.

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True or not: Rafael Espinoza is the best featherweight in boxing

Not real (yet). Espinoza still has something to work on and win more titles. But the way he boxes seems inevitable.

Espinoza (24-0, 20 KO), of Guadalajara, Mexico, makes his first defense of his WBO title on Friday against Sergio Chirino in Las Vegas, six months after his decisive victory over Robeisy Ramirez. Espinoza recovered from a fifth-round knockout and defeated Ramirez, who was the favorite for the fight, by majority vote. Espinoza dropped Ramirez in the final round after an impressive finish from the Mexican, whose punch count outplayed the two-time Olympic gold medalist from Cuba.

What makes Espinoza (literally) a cut above many elite featherweights is his 6-foot-10 height. Espinoza can apply his height and 74-inch reach to win fights, but he also showed the heart to get off the canvas and win like that.

Espinoza, 30, is one of many who have shined in the featherweight division over the past 12 months. Nick Ball has emerged as one of the top boxers in this division after robust previous two fights. Ball (20-0-1, 11 KO), of Liverpool, England, won the WBA featherweight title with a split decision victory over Raymond Ford earlier this month. The triumph followed a controversial draw with Rey Vargas for the WBC title in March. But Espinoza dominated the ball 5-2.

The 33-year-old Vargas disappointed against the 27-year-old Ball and has not won in almost two years, and a move to junior lightweight seems likely. Former WBA featherweight champion Leigh Wood (28-3, 17 KO) of Nottingham, England, could also move up a division, with speculation in the UK linking him to a rematch with Josh Warrington at 130 pounds. Even before his last fight, 35-year-old Wood talked about moving up a weight class.

Luis Alberto Lopez (30-2, 17 KO) of Baja California, Mexico, is the current ESPN No. 1 featherweight after stopping Reiya Abe in eight rounds in March for his third defense of the IBF belt. What’s impressive about Lopez is how he triumphed over obstacles such as boxing in the champion’s hometown and being injured early in his fight with Warrington in Leeds, England.

Lopez, 30, and Brandon Figueroa pose the biggest threats to Espinoza at featherweight. Figueroa (25-1, 19 KO) has made steady progress since moving up from junior featherweight, and the 27-year-old from Weslaco, Texas, showed he can fight at featherweight after knocking out Jessie Magdaleno in May. Figueroa (27) may face Vargas for the WBC belt this year.

However, an event that may upset the order in the featherweight division is the potential transition of Naoya Inoue (27-0, 24 KO) from the junior featherweight category. Inoue is a four-weight world champion and arguably one of the best boxers in the world on a pound-for-pound basis (Inoue is ranked No. 3 in the ESPN rankings).

If Espinoza is going to become the No. 1 featherweight, he better do it soon.

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Real or not: Gervonta Davis vs. Vasily Lomachenko will happen

True. Following Tank’s eighth-round KO victory over Frank Martin to retain his WBA title, talks are expected to gain momentum toward a top lightweight clash with Loma later this year (Davis is No. 1 in ESPN’s 135-pound rankings and Lomachenko is number 2).

Davis is the No. 7 boxer in ESPN’s weight-for-pound rankings and undoubtedly one of the most hazardous boxers in the sport. His impressive in-ring IQ and patient approach allow him to find opportunities that lead to explosive KOs. However, he has yet to face another elite competitor.

Even though Lomachenko is now 36 years ancient and not yet in his prime, he is still pretty damn good. His stunning angles and impeccable footwork were on display during Lomachenko’s 11th-round TKO victory over George Kambosos Jr. last month and winning the IBF lightweight title.

Lomachenko also has name recognition thanks to many major televised events. And while he’s not as massive a star as Davis, a PPV fight between the pair would generate massive business.

This is a long-awaited fight, and since Lomachenko will turn 37 in February, it’s time to unify the lightweight title. Yes, Davis is in PBC and Lomachenko is in Top Rank, but that should not prevent this fight from being organized. The two companies previously collaborated on the second and third Fury-Wilder fights and the 2021 Terence Crawford-Shawn Porter fight.

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Real or not: Tyson Fury will defeat Oleksandr Usyk in the rematch

False. Don’t write off the “Gypsy King” regaining the heavyweight crown for a third time, but undisputed heavyweight champion Usyk retaining the belts seems more likely after their rematch scheduled for December 21.

Fury (34-1-1, 24 KO) can take a lot of positives from his performance against Usyk in Saudi Arabia last month. The English boxer won several early rounds and although it looked as if he would be stopped in round 9, Fury carried on to the end. Usyk won by split decision.

Usyk (22-0, 14 KO) showered Fury with punches and knocked him down in the 9th round. The Englishman also knocked down Francis Ngannou again in October last year. Fury needs to find a way to strengthen his defense in the rematch as Usyk repeatedly landed left hands in the second half of the fight.

Fury (35) is a astute boxer with the right skills. He showed he can win rounds against Usyk, but Fury will need to adapt in the rematch, find a way to avoid Usyk’s overhand from the left and perhaps make better apply of his reach by moving out of range after throwing punches.

As well as regaining his belts, Fury will be motivated to deliver robust performances to keep the prospect of fighting English rival Anthony Joshua alive in 2025.

However, most will favor the 37-year-old Usyk winning again, perhaps by a larger margin.

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Real or not: Joseph Parker and Zhilei Zhang will meet in a rematch later this year

True. This appears to be a fight to make after Parker was knocked down twice but recovered to outlast Zhang in March.

China’s Zhang bounced back from a spectacular fifth-round KO of Deontay Wilder earlier this month, likely securing another marquee fight later this year. This should put Modern Zealand’s Parker up against it, especially considering who is in ESPN’s top 10 heavyweights.

Usyk and Fury are tied in the rematch on December 21. Anthony Joshua and Daniel Dubois are heading to their September 21 fight at Wembley Stadium. That leaves Parker and Zhang, who round out ESPN’s top five (Parker is No. 4, Zhang is No. 5).

Zhang’s last two fights were in Riyad, as were Parker’s last three fights (including his decision victory over Wilder in December). In his first fight, Zhang dropped Parker in rounds 3 and 8. Parker otherwise mostly lost to the then 40-year-old.

Parker-Zhang 2 could land on the Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol card on October 12 in Riyad, if not December 21. The September 21 card in London is also the highlight of the season in Riyad.

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Real or not: Nate Diaz will beat Jorge Masvidal in boxing

On paper, not in reality. It’s challenging to say he’ll do it. Masvidal is a -230 betting favorite (per ESPN BET) for a reason. Diaz’s ability to take damage and stay in a fight remains surprisingly intact, but he’s reached a point in his career where that could happen at any time.

The last time we saw Diaz, almost a year ago, he was losing almost every round to Jake Paul. He also fell in this fight and appeared to be injured in the first round. This is bad news for the Diaz Army. Here’s some good news. This boxing match against Paul was at 185 pounds, which favored Paul. Paul’s youth also played a massive role in this matchup.

Masvidal is 39, like Diaz. This is a fight where what Diaz does well – punching with volume, using his size on Masvidal to wear him down on the ropes – should work much better than last year, when it was officially his first professional fight. The protected bet here is Masvidal’s decision, but there are reasons to believe that Diaz is not a passive player. This fight is more complicated for him than the last one, but Masvidal’s speed and veteran will still make it very hard.