LONDON, England, CMC

Five ex-world champions are among several Caribbean boxers listed among contenders in the latest list of Commonwealth Boxing Council (CBC) champions and contenders, released this weekend.

Wayne Braithwaite and Jamaican O'Neil Bell, former cruiserweight world champions, Braithwaite's Guyanese colleagues Vivian Harris and Gairy St Clair, and another Jamaican Glen Johnson, appear as CBC contenders.

Target world titles

Commonwealth titles are hardly ever pursued by high-profile US-based boxers who are more inclined to target world titles, but New York-based Braithwaite and Bell, who resides in Atlanta, are listed as contenders for the Commonwealth championship, which is currently vacant.

Johnson, who fights out of Miami, is a contender for the light heavyweight crown presently held by Nathan Cleverly, of Wales.

Guyana's Sean Corbin is also a light heavyweight contender.

New York-based Harris, a former world light welterweight champion, is a contender in that 140-pound division, which has Nigerian Ajose Olusegan as champion.

The CBC does not rank its contenders like many other organisations do and the contenders' list is done alphabetically.

St Clair, who lost a Common-wealth title fight to British champion Amir Khan earlier this year, is a contender in the super featherweight division.

Scotland's Ricky Burns as super-featherweight champion and the Bahamian Meacher Major is also a contender in that 130-pound category.

Bahamian Jermain Mackey, the super-middleweight title-holder, is the Caribbean's lone reigning Commonwealth champion.

Mackey defeated Ghana's Michael Gbenga for the belt this past summer in Nassau and must defend his title against another Ghanaian Charles Adamu by June 30 next year or face the possibility of being stripped.

Mackey's Bahamian colleague Elkeana Saunders and Trinidad and Tobago's Kirt Sinette are also contenders in the 168-pound super-middleweight division.