Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol squared off in a rematch on Saturday, February 22, at The Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The contest featured the Montreal-based, defending undisputed light heavyweight champion against the former WBA 175-pound titleholder from Kyrgyzstan.
The pair ran it back following their first fight last October, when Beterbiev collected all four major belts by majority decision. The second showdown also went the full distance. One judge scored it 114-114, while two other judges scored it 116-112 and 115-113 in favor of Bivol.
With the victory by majority decision, Dmitry Bivol (24-1, 12 KOs) bounced back from his first career defeat, took revenge, and became the division’s new undisputed champion.
“Just me,” Bivol said when asked what was different in the rematch. “I was better, I was pushing myself more, I was more confident, I was lighter. I just wanted to win so much today.”
“It was hard, to be honest, to keep him at a distance for the first four rounds. Then I saw that he was tired. I was tired too, but he was tired as well. I had to be smarter, I had to throw more clean punches, and I did.”
“When asked about a third fight with Beterbiev, Bivol said, ‘I’m ready for any future challenge, but I want a little bit of rest because I had an injury last summer, and this time I had more injuries. I was using anti-inflammatory medication almost all camp. I want to heal a little and then come back.”
Artur Beterbiev (21-1, 20 KOs) lost his first fight and dropped the title.
“Actually, I didn’t want the second fight,” Beterbiev said when asked if he wanted a trilogy with Bivol. “I mean, it’s not my choice. But no problem. We are going to do the third fight if it’s needed.”