Just who is Ricardo Torres?

That is the question Junior Witter has been asking since the WBO published their latest - and strangest - rankings.

Witter, who wants a piece of their champion Miguel Cotto, is mystified by the new list, which has dropped him to sixth spot.

Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions, Witter's American backers, are demanding answers after Colombian Torres jumped from six to two - without fighting.

Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer said: "I think there must be some mistake and I will be contacting the WBO to correct it. Junior is the logical No 1 contender for Cotto."

While Witter beat Lovemore N'Dou in Los Angeles, Torres has been out of action since October when he climbed off the canvas to beat fellow countryman Ignacio Solar. So where is the logic behind the WBO rankings?

Witter said: "I am not sure what is going on at the WBO.

"Before I went to fight N'Dou I was No 4 with only Henry Bruseles, David Diaz and Ricky Hatton in front of me.

"Bruseles then has the floor wiped with him by Floyd Mayweather, Diaz loses to an unknown and a fight between Hatton and Kostya Tszyu was agreed.

"Surely then even before the N'Dou fight I should have been No 1 contender?

"I still go to America and prove myself against world class N'Dou and now somehow in the latest rankings I find myself at No 6. In my opinion someone could be pulling strings here.

"I should be their mandatory contender. I deserve that position and am asking the WBO to do the right thing here and hold an enquiry into this."

Torres boasts a perfect 25-0 record with 23 knock-outs. It is an impressive record until you scratch below the surface.

Critics like to question Witter over the quality of some of his opponents, but what about Torres?

Eleven of his wins have come against five Colombian fighters with only one recorded success between them. And only four of his opponents stepped into the ring with positive records.

There is nobody on there remotely close in class to Salvatore Battaglia, Guiseppe Lauri and certainly N'Dou. Even in the weird and wonderful world of pro boxing, something is clearly not right.

Witter has been told not to punch with his left hand for four weeks after seeing a specialist in Oxford. The X-rays confirmed

ligament damage which will take time to heal.

The deadline for purse bids for his next European defence against Andreas Kotelnik, due next week, will be put back until Witter is declared fit to fight again.