By Dmitry Bivol claimed the undisputed light heavyweight world champion crown as he got revenge over Artur Beterbiev in a thrilling fight in Saudi Arabia on Saturday.
Bivol suffered his first career loss at the hands of defending champion Beterbiev in a stunning result four months ago and quickly called for a rematch.
And in their rematch in Riyadh, it was a tight affair with Bivol eventually winning via a judge’s decision with two judges scoring the fight 116-112 and 115-113 in his favor, while the third judge had a 114-114 draw.
“(The difference) was just me,” a smiling Bivol said in the ring afterwards holding all four title belts, per AP. “I was better. I was pushing myself more. I was more confident. I was lighter, and I just wanted to win so much today.”
The two Russians looked equally matched during the opening rounds of their second fight on Saturday but the younger Bivol ramped up the intensity in the middle rounds as he showed why he’s near the top of the world pound-for-pound rankings.
The 34-year-old displayed his power to deliver blows to Beterbiev while still being able to evade his opponent’s counter attempts.
Beterbiev, 40, did eventually land a powerful blow in the 12th round – his right hand opening a cut above Bivol’s left eye – but it was too little too late as Bivol held on to hand his compatriot a first career defeat.
“I’m just so happy,” Bivol said. “I went through a lot last year. … To be honest, I lost (the first bout), and I felt a little bit easier, maybe. I didn’t pressure too much this time, like before the last fight. I just wanted to work from the first round until the end of the 12th. I hoped I did enough, and I won it.”
After Bivol had exploded into the wide public’s conscience thanks to a shock victory over Canelo Álvarez in 2022, his loss to Beterbiev last year – the result saw Beterbiev become the first undisputed light heavyweight champion in the division’s four-belt era – was a surprise to most and set up a highly-anticipated rematch to see the two compatriots continue their rivalry.
And Saturday’s rematch didn’t disappoint, with both fighters displaying a high-level of boxing throughout, and it will likely result in a third fight between the two.
Afterwards, Beterbiev admitted he wasn’t thrilled by the prospect of fighting Bivol for the second time but is now relishing the opportunity to avenge his first career defeat.
“I think this fight was better than the first fight,” Beterbiev said. “Now it’s my time to come back. … Actually, I didn’t even want the second fight. It wasn’t my choice. But no problem. We’re going to do a third fight if we need.”
Earlier on Saturday in Riyadh, New Zealand’s Joseph Parker produced a dominant display to stop Martin Bakole in the second round to win the WBO interim heavyweight title and potentially set up a unification fight with Oleksandr Usyk.
Parker’s win over Bakole – who stepped in two days before the fight after Daniel Dubois withdrew with illness – was an impressive outing, with Usyk watching from ringside.
