Dmitry Bivol Risks WBO Belt for Artur Beterbiev Trilogy

Eddie Hearn expects Callum Smith and Joshua Buatsi to contest the vacant title if Bivol chooses the third Beterbiev fight.

Dmitry Bivol may give up the WBO light heavyweight title rather than face mandatory challenger Callum Smith. Eddie Hearn expects that decision to clear Bivol’s path toward a third fight with Artur Beterbiev while opening the belt for Smith and Joshua Buatsi.

“I think it’s unlikely he’ll defend against [Callum] Smith. I think Smith will fight Joshua Buatsi for the vacant [WBO 175-lb] title. But Bivol is ready to make the Beterbiev fight,” Hearn told Ring Magazine.

The comments fit the direction Bivol has taken over the last year. He previously gave up the WBC title instead of making a mandatory defense, choosing to stay on course for another meeting with Beterbiev. A similar decision with the WBO belt would leave one more world title vacant while the two rivals settle their series.

Bivol and Beterbiev have already shared the ring twice in Saudi Arabia. Beterbiev edged the first meeting by majority decision to become the undisputed light heavyweight champion. Bivol gained revenge in the rematch with his own majority decision victory, evening the rivalry at one win apiece.

A third fight has long been viewed as the natural conclusion to one of boxing’s closest rivalries. If Bivol vacates the WBO title, the path would also open for Callum Smith to renew his rivalry with Joshua Buatsi after their competitive meeting in 2025, with the vacant championship at stake.

The WBO has ordered Bivol to defend against Smith as his mandatory challenger, but Hearn believes the trilogy with Beterbiev is the priority. If that scenario unfolds, the light heavyweight division would feature two major fights instead of one, with Bivol and Beterbiev deciding their rivalry while Smith and Buatsi compete for the vacant WBO championship.