Artur Beterbiev posted today on social media to let his followers know his fight with Dmitry Bivol is one month away on June 1st at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The Beterbiev Buzz
Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) will have his IBF/WBC/WBO light heavyweight titles at stake when he battles WBA champion Bivol (22-0, 11 KOs) for the undisputed 175-lb championship.
Many boxing fans are looking forward to watching Beterbiev and Bivol battle it out for the #1 spot next month. The 2016 Olympian Beterbiev enters the fight with a 100% knockout rate, and he’ll be facing what some believe is the best fighter in the 175-lb division.
Bivol’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, is convinced he’ll do the job on Beterbiev after watching him defeat Canelo Alvarez, Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez, and Lyndon Arthur in recent fights.
Hearn could be wrong, though, because Beterbiev has the power and high-pressure style to send Bivol down to his first career defeat.
Beterbiev’s Path Of Destruction
Callum Smith
Anthony Yarde
Joe Smith
Marcus Browne
Adam Deines
Oleksandr Gvozdyk
Radivoje Kalajdzic
Callum Johnson
Expert predictions
“Beterbiev by the simple fact that he’s a very clever fighter and he can bang, but I obviously wouldn’t be surprised if Bivol [wins],” said Ben Whittaker to Pro Boxing Fans, picking IBF/WBC/WBO light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev to defeat WBA champ Dmitry Bivol in their undisputed 175-lb championship on June 1st.
Beterbiev is going to be putting the heat on Bivol, who has an in-and-out style of fighting. Bivol likes to jump in, throw two or three punches, and then retreat to the outside to the safety of the outside.
We’ll see if Bivol can get away with that style against Beterbiev, who has excellent timing and will be ready for him when he goes on one of his bombing runs.
Bivol has shined recently, with his victories over Lyndon Arthur, Gilberto Ramirez and Canelo Alvarez. His win over Canelo was so one-sided that the Mexican warrior chose not to push for a rematch, even though he initially said he would after losing a 12 round decision in 2022.
The winner of the Bivol vs. Beteriev fight could face the victor of the June 15th fight contest between David Benavidez and Oleksandr Gvozdyk. It’ll be up to His Excellency Turki Alalshikh which direction the Bivol-Beterbiev winner goes. A rematch might even be possible.
One month before fight, keep going according to plan. pic.twitter.com/cTkwzcuZfP
— Artur Beterbiev (@ABeterbiev) May 1, 2024