By Scott Gilfoid: Dmitry Bivol made it clear to British promoter Eddie Hearn that he wants the fight against Canelo Alvarez next, and he’s ready to move down to 168 to make it happen.
For WBA light heavyweight champion Bivol (17-0, 11 KOs), the fight against Canelo Alvarez (53-1-2, 36 KOs) isn’t about money. Bivol, 29, wants to fight Canelo for legacy. He knows that the money will follow after he beats Canelo.
Eddie steers Bivol away from Canelo
Hearn let Bivol know that Canelo is supposed to be fighting WBO super middleweight champion Billy Joe Saunders (29-0, 14 KOs) next, and if not him, then Gennadiy Golovkin.
Those are both fighters that Hearn promotes. Instead of Hearn encouraging Bivol to fight Canelo, he brought up IBF/WBC light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev, and 175-lb contenders Callum Johnson and Joshua Buatsi. Hearn wants Bivol to fight the winner of the Johnson vs. Buatsi fight.
Bivol: “I have my belt, and I have to keep it and get more belts. This is my motivation,” said Bivol with Eddie Hearn Live on Instagram. “Of course, I see my future at 175, but I talked about I can move down to 168 to get the big fight.
“I don’t have a problem making 168 to fight Canelo. Why we’re talking about Canelo is because he has a problem with his opponent. I know that you and DAZN don’t have a problem of making a fight between you and me against Canelo?” said Bivol.
Hearn: “Maybe Canelo will [have a problem with fighting Bivol]. I don’t have a problem.”
Bivol: “We have to ask him about this.”
Dmitry Bivol wants to fight Canelo to make history
Bivol might not have a problem with fighting Canelo, but there’s been no interest from the Mexican fighter in facing him. If Canelo had wanted to fight Bivol, he would have said something and confronted him at 175 instead of Sergey Kovalev.
Beating Canelo won’t make history for Bivol. It’ll make him a lot of money, and give him an excellent name on his resume. But far as setting records or making history, it won’t be a big deal. Canelo has arguably been beaten by Gennadiy Golovkin, Erislandy Lara, Austin Trout, and, of course, Floyd Mayweather.
Hearn: “We have Billy Joe Saunders, of course, that is due to fight [Canelo], and he has a hearing with the board. That may take place against Gennadiy Golovkin, but certainly, for you, you wouldn’t price yourself out with the money. You would make sure you fought Canelo.”
Bivol: “Yes, of course, I want to make my own fight with him [Canelo] to make my own history, and then it’s about money. Of course, we’re here to earn money, but it’s not my goal to earn money. No, I have enough money. I’m happy. But first of all, I need to show my skills and open my talent for boxing fans. This makes me happier than money,” said Bivol.
Hearn: “Good. I like to hear that. For me, one of the best pound-for-pound fights in boxing is you and Artur Beterbiev. He’s now the unified world champion, you have history, and you know each other.
“He’s a big puncher, exciting, and you’ve shown everything from technical to punch power as well. You against Artur Beterbiev, for me, when we come back from this world-wide problem, is a fight that we need. I would love to see that fight this year,” said Hearn.
Beterbiev vs. Bivol = big fight
A fight between WBA light heavyweight champion Bivol and unbeaten IBF/WBC champ Artur Beterbiev (15-0, 15 KOs) would be huge. It would be a bigger deal if Bivol fought Canelo Alvarez. In North America and the UK, there would be more interest from boxing fans in Bivol vs. Canelo.
Bivol: “Yes, of course, it’s a great fight, and it’s a really tough fight for me and for him [Beterbiev] because we little bit know each other. And Artur Beterbiev is the most dangerous fighter in the world, one of the most. He has the power. He’s really powerful, and he has two belts, and it’s worth it.”
Hearn: “I want to ask you a question about the two British light heavyweights. We have two powerful light heavyweight challengers over here. We have Callum Johnson, who had a great fight against Artur Beterbiev. He was on the floor with a left hook. And another fighter in Joshua Buatsi. Are you aware of these guys?”
Bivol: “Yes, of course, I’m aware of their fights. I’ve watched many fights in the light heavyweight division. I think Joshua Buatsi is one of the big stars from the United Kingdom, and I think shortly, we will fight. What about Callum Johnson? Yes, he has the power too.”
Hearn: “Yes, maybe Buatsi fights Johnson, and then the winner fights you?”
Bivol: “Maybe me fight against Johnson or Buatsi and then.”
Hearn: “And maybe in the UK.”
Bivol: “Why not? We can talk about it. I’m ready to fight anywhere.”
It’s interesting how Hearn is pushing Buatsi and Callum Johson on Bivol instead of encouraging him to fight Canelo. There’s not much for Bivol to gain in fighting Callum because he’s already been knocked out by Beterbiev.
As far as Buatsi, he’s still green and hasn’t fought anyone good yet as a profession. A fight between Bivol and Buatsi wouldn’t make much noise in the UK, as no knows who the British fighter is at this point.
