Former light heavyweight king Roy Jones Jr. has called for an immediate rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol after Beterbiev eked out a majority decision win on Saturday in Saudi Arabia.
Jones, who won the 175-pound undisputed championship in 1999, believes the undisputed light heavyweight title bout between Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) and Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs) should’ve been scored a draw.
“Last night, we had a very fantastic fight,” Jones said on social media. “A fight that I thought could’ve gone either way, but what happened happened. However, it goes, nobody won or lost the fight by four points.
“So that’s ridiculous, which is why I say we need an immediate rematch.”
Bivol started well in the opening rounds before Beterbiev answered with a stronger finish. Judges Glenn Feldman, Pawel Kardyni, and Manuel Oliver Palomo scored the seesaw fight 116-112, 115-113, and 114-114.
Jones said he was impressed by both fighters’ approach.
“Both guys did a lot to change. Beterbiev showed me more than he’s ever shown me before about being a boxer. He actually can walk, and I was surprised.
“Bivol was a very good defender, which we knew. He was a good counter-puncher, which we knew. He jumped out to the early lead, I thought, but we never know. But how did it come down?
“Beterbiev did finish the fight strong or stronger. So that’s why I think in my point of view, the fight should be a draw, and it’s gonna be a rematch.”
Bernard Neequaye is a sports journalist with a specialty in boxing coverage. He wrote a boxing column titled “From The Ringside” in his native Ghana for years. He can be reached on X (formerly Twitter) at @BernardNeequaye, LinkedIn at Bernard Neequaye and through email at [email protected].
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