By Dan Ambrose: Eddie Hearn wants to see if Dmitry Bivol can make 168 to challenge Canelo Alvarez for his undisputed super middleweight title in his next fight.
If Bivol can make the 168-lb limit safely without being drained or having his health at risk, he’ll have the opportunity to become the undisputed champion by beating Canelo.
Hearn says that Bivol’s #1 fighter on his hit list, Artur Beterbiev, probably won’t be available to fight him until September of next year due to his busy schedule.
Not surprisingly, Bivol (21-0, 11 KOs) won’t wait that long before he competes again, and that’s where Canelo would come in. The two can fight in May in a rematch, which allows the Mexican star the chance to avenge his loss from last May.
“I thought Dmitry Bivol was unbelievable, and he is a pound-for-pound great,” said Eddie Hearn to iFL TV after Dmitry Bivol’s win over Gilberto Ramirez.
“Maybe, he does want to be undisputed, but maybe we’ll look at Canelo Alvarez at 168 for the undisputed,” said Hearn when reminded that Bivol wants to fight for the undisputed at 175 against IBF, WBC & WBO light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev.
“Maybe Dmitry Bivol can make the weight. We’ll have to see, and we’ll have to talk to Eddy Reynoso and Saul, the boss, about who they want to fight,” said Hearn.
Canelo probably won’t be agreeable to facing Bivol at 168 because if he were to lose, he would be belt-less because he would take his undisputed super middleweight championship.
Moreover, if Canelo were to lose, it would look bad because the excuse of him losing to the bigger man would be out the window.
If chooses to stay out of the ring until September due to his surgically repaired left hand, Bivol could possibly defend his WBA light heavyweight title against #2 WBA, #2 WBC, #4 WBO, and #12 IBF Joshua Buatsi.
Hearn promotes Buatsi, who was in attendance last Saturday night for Bivol’s fight against Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez in Abu Dhabi. It wouldn’t be the greatest fight for Bivol facing Buatsi, but it would be a good plan C option if he can’t get Beterbiev or Canelo.
Buatsi would be similar to Craig Richards for Bivol, and it won’t be a tough fight. The hardest thing for Bivol in fighting Buatsi is that he would need to do it in front of his own British fans in London because that’s the only place it would sell.
American boxing fans as a whole don’t know who Buatsi is, so they wouldn’t turn out in huge numbers for a right between him and Bivol.
“Dmitry now has the right to make his own decisions. He’s become a big, big star, a tremendous fighter, and we’ll see what’s next for both of them,” said Hearn.
