Artur Beterbiev is 44 days away from the rematch with Dmitri Bivola on February 22 in Riyadh.
Undisputed light heavyweight champion Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) looks to close a chapter in his rivalry with Bivola (23-1, 12 KOs) for the second time. He will do it in a way that will make it impossible for the fans and his promoter to complain like they have been doing 24/7.
No more mistakes
The February 22nd event will be shown live on DAZN PPV. A few of the undercard fights are arguably better than the main event.
Beterbiev’s 12-round majority decision win over Bivola in their fight on October 12 last year was not decisive enough to satisfy the fans who allowed him to move on to bigger and better things against more popular fighters.
As such, Artur is stuck at it again, but this time he’s expected to attack Bivolo mercilessly, chasing him around to get the knockout. Beterbiev’s mistakes in the fight with Bivol made him closer than it should have been.
Bivol angered Beterbiev in the seventh round when he landed a four-punch combination. He was trying to do what he did against Arturo Canelo Alvarez. This awakened Beterbiev’s competitive spirit and the disrespect shown by Bivol, and from then on he went after him.
Can Bivol hold on and deliver?
When Artur finally started to press Bivol non-stop, it was one-sided. Dmitry seemed scared and unable to stand and fight. That was the interesting part. Bivol was less daring than some of Beterbiev’s recent opponents, such as Anthony Yarde and Callum Smith.
Both men came to fight and tried to knock Beterbiev out. We didn’t see that from Buffalo, who fought terribly throughout the second half and made the fight boring to watch. It was identical to how Dmitry fought in his match against Lyndon Arthur after he injured him in the championship rounds. The buffalo did not want to participate in the fight with Arthur after his haircut.
Beterbiev’s mistakes
- Slow startup: He didn’t start attacking until the sixth round, and by then Bivol had scored many of the first five rounds. Some believe he did enough to win all five before Beterbiev started to heat him up.
- Too much respect for Buffalo: Artur looked worried about being hit by Bivolo’s fast combinations in the first five rounds.
“There is a saying. ‘It’s cold and lonely at the top.’ I’m not on top. I walk the earth. I’m not alone,” Artur Beterbiev told DAZN Boxing. “All my fans with me. Close and related people.”
Rain or snow, the champion is 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗬 💪#BeterbievBivol2 | #RiyadhSeason | February 22, live on DAZN | @Turki_alalshikh pic.twitter.com/ger97OJdgi
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) January 9, 2025
