Eddie Hearn says Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol have both signed to meet in April or May for the undisputed light heavyweight championship in Saudi Arabia, provided that Beterbiev (19-0, 19 KOs) is victorious against challenger Callum Smith this Saturday night.
Hearn states that if Smith (29-1, 21 KOs) wins, they’ll make a deal for him to face the WBA 175-lb champion for the undisputed. Smith would be the IBF, WBC & WBO champ, and the fight would be massive, perhaps even bigger than a Beterbiev-Bivol clash.
Bivol Awaits, But Beterbiev Must Defeat Smith
Beterbiev needs to put his energy into defeating the confident Smith, who has an air about him that the victory is a sure thing. Smith and his trainer, Buddy McGirt, have studied a lot of the past fights of the 38-year-old Beterbiev, and they believe they know how to beat him.
It’s not good for Beterbiev that he hasn’t fought in a year, and he struggled in his last fight against Anthony Yarde before stopping him in the eighth round. That said, Yarde is a powerful fighter and someone who would give anyone problems at light heavyweight.
Hearn Confirms Bivol Deal, Eyes April or May
“When we did the deal in Saudi Arabia with His Excellency, the plan was for Dmitry Bivol to fight for the undisputed fight. A fight that they like is Beterbiev against Bivol,” said Eddie Hearn to Boxing News.
“Obviously, they haven’t thought much about the Callum Smith fight because, in their mind, I think they believe Beterbiev will win on Saturday. From our point of view with Bivol, he’s already signed to fight Artur Beterbiev.
“There isn’t a deal in place for him to fight Callum Smith, but that will be quite a natural position if he were to win on Saturday. If and when he wins on Saturday, we’ll be looking to make the undisputed fight with Dmitry Bivol.
“In April sometime, April or May,” said Hearn on when he plans on making the undisputed fight in Saudi Arabia.
“If I win that, the world is my oyster. I’m in a very good position. I’m a three-belt world champion. I’m sure the Bivol fight can be made pretty simple,” said Callum Smith to Boxing News.
