Artur Beterbiev showed no emotion when told that Oleksandr Usyk is picking Dmitry Bivol to defeat him this Saturday night. Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) smiled and said, “They can say anything.”
(Photo credit: Leigh Dawney/Queensberry Promotions)
Some believe that Usyk is still bitter about his fight against Beterbiev in the 2012 Olympics, as he was badly hurt by Artur and appeared to lose the contest. Beterbiev clearly won two of the three rounds and punched holes through Usyk with every shot.
The judges gave Usyk a 17-13 victory in their quarterfinal match, but many felt that Beterbiev had done more than enough to deserve the win. Like Anthony Joshua, Usyk went home with a controversial gold medal at the Olympics in London.
Usyk had been the darling of the Olympics in the heavyweight class and was favored to win the gold. Beterbiev got the better of him but ended up losing a questionable decision. Could Usyk still harbor a sense of bitterness there?
This wasn’t the first time Usyk fought Beterbiev, as they had competed in the 2011 World Championships. Beterbiev knocked Usyk down in the third round with a hard shot to the body, but Oleksandr won by a 17-13 score. That was another fight that Beterbiev had fought well enough to win, but the judges gave it to Usyk.
“Of course, it’s the biggest. It’s the undisputed fight for all the belts. I don’t know. I’m not thinking about it,” said Artur Beterbiev to Pro Boxing Fans, reacting to being told that Canelo Alvarez wants to fight Dmitry Bivol if he’s victorious, but not him if he wins on Saturday.
“They can say anything. I don’t think about them about what they say and what they not. I’m all focused on my fight,” said Beterbiev when told that Oleksandr Usyk is picking Bivol to defeat him.
Again, Usyk might still be salty about what Beterbiev did to him in their two fights, especially the 2012 Olympics. When Usyk looks at his gold medal on the shelf, he’s got to view it as tarnished because fans see it as gifted.
“Those home comforts in Quebec and Canada. This is a fight on the road. Bivol has the experience of two fights in the Kingdom before. That’s not something that’s been talked about,” said promoter Eddie Hearn to Queensberry Promotions about Beterbiev not having fought in Riyadh before.
“I’m not saying that’s going to throw him off, but he is traveling, he is on the road, and he is getting on; he has had knee surgery,” said Hearn about Beterbiev. “We’re going to clutch a few more straws here tonight and pray. Bivol is the guy to beat him.”
Beterbiev won’t be thrown off fighting outside of Canada because he did a lot of traveling during his amateur career, and he’s not going to be intimidated by being away from his homebase. If Bivol is going to win, it’s not going to be due to Beterbiev being uncomfortable being in unfamiliar surroundings.
“I think the first few rounds of this fight are going to be important because in the first couple of rounds, if he gets caught, if he gets marked up, he goes back to his corner, then you’re thinking, ‘There’s a long way to go,’” said Hearn, talking about Bivol. “What you actually want is to get through six, seven, or eight rounds and be 5-1 up or 6-2 after eight. Not hold up, but think, ‘We got four rounds here.’”
Biviol’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, is hoping that he can jump out to an insurmountable lead after eight rounds and then go into the prevent defense in the final four to get the win. Beterbiev can’t afford to let Bivol win the first half of the fight because he’ll milk the lead by running and holding in rounds nine through twelve.
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