Finally, it’s going down. The most awaited superfight of the year. Dmitri Bivol (23-0, 12KOs) vs. Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20KOs).
Two undefeated fighters duking it out for all the marbles in the light heavyweight division. It doesn’t get any better than this. Here are our three possible scenarios for this blockbuster of a donnybrook.
FIRST. Bivol comes out jabbing, trying to work up a rhythm. Beterbiev is his usual aggressive self, snarling a thudding right hand every now and then.
The pace is quite frenetic in the first few rounds, with neither man able to seize a sizable advantage. However, in the sixth round, a clash of heads would result in Beterbiev sporting a nasty gash around his eyebrow.
It initially doesn’t appear to bother him, but by the ninth round, Bivol is clearly targeting the cut and it just gets nastier by the minute.
Beterbiev’s output also begins to wane as he seemingly slows down in the 11th. This was the moment that Bivol had been waiting for.
He unloads a combination, and as Beterbiev tries to cover up his bloody face, the ref steps in to check on the cut. The ring physician is called in, and after a brief huddle, the denouement of the fight is called. It’s Bivol via TKO.
SECOND. Storming right out of the gates is Beterbiev. He unloads his artillery on Bivol, who pedals backward and tries to fend off the assault.
They settle into a pattern in the middle rounds, with Bivol boxing and Beterbiev stalking him.
Then it happens. In the sixth round, Bivol gets careless as he momentarily has his left hand down after missing a hook. This is all that Beterbiev needs as he times Bivol’s miss with a counter right hand that lands smack on the latter’s jaw. He is down immediately.
He groggily gets up at the count of six and is deemed fit to continue. Beterbiev, however, is unconvinced. He hurts Bivol with a right to the midsection, and an uppercut from hell drops Bivol again, and this time he would not get up. Beterbiev by KO.
THIRD. Both men are strangely reticent in the first few rounds, which seemed anticlimactic considering all the hype generated for this fight.
But things pick up in the middle rounds as both men exchange and land left hooks. From then on, it’s a war.
Bivol boxes and counterpunches, while Beterbiev comes forward throwing punches in bunches.
It lives up to its billing as the fight is too close to call. The bell rings to signal the end of the fight and both warriors embrace, bringing the crowd to its feet.
In the end, the judges have it a split decision in favor of Bivol and almost immediately talks of a rematch are underway.
LAST ROUND. It’s on Joaquin Fabricante who recently turned 18. Cheers!