Undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev asked his Instagram followers today whether he needs to give a rematch to the beaten Dmitry Bivol.
Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) already beat the former WBA champion Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs) by a 12-round majority decision on October 12th in a fight that resembled a cat chasing a mouse around. Bivol showed no desire to stand and fight after Beterbiev turned up on the pressure in the sixth.
Bivol made it REALLY boring with his Shakur-esque style of fighting, running, trying not to get hit, and tying up Beterbiev when he’d get near enough to throw. Fans don’t want to see another run-job by Bivol, and that’s what he’s going to do because he can’t stand and fight Beterbiev. He’ll get chewed up.
Boxing fans had waited years to watch that fight, and it was 100% boring, and not because of Beterbiev.
It was Bivol. He made it unwatchable, and he deserved to lose. Normally, when a fighter gets beaten, they have to work their way back, which is what Bivol should have to do by fighting Joshua Buatsi to get in position for another title shot.
One reason Beterbiev asked his followers is that there’s a more entertaining option for him against the winner of the February 1st fight between David Benavidez and David Morrell. Those two younger fighters have entertaining styles, and they will come to fight Beterbiev, not run around the ring for 12 rounds like Dmitry Bivol.
If Beterbiev has any say so in the matter, he needs to tell Bivol to get lost, go back to the end of the line, and take his running style someplace else. Maybe Canelo Alvarez wants to give Bivol a rematch. If not, Bivol should have to go back to the salt mines and slog his way back like the rest of the grunts trying to get a title shot. Bivol does NOT deserve an immediate title shot after the safety-first fight he put in.
Beterbiev beat Bivol by the scores 115-113, 116-112 and 114-114. I had Beterbiev winning 10-2. Bivol fought well enough to win two of the early rounds when Beterbiev was compiling data.
