Dmitry Bivol’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, was asked on social media if he believes a rematch will occur between the former WBA light heavyweight champion Bivol and undisputed champion Artur Beterbiev, and he answered in the affirmative that it will.
What we saw from Bivol last October in his loss to Beterbiev may be as good as it gets for him, as he doesn’t have the power or the courage under fire to win the rematch. Beterbiev only fought hard in the second half of the fight, and once he ramped up his offense, Bivol looked afraid.
Hearn says they’ve already accepted the rematch with Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs). Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs) lost to Beterbiev by a 12-round majority decision last month on October 12th in Riyadh.
While many boxing fans believed that Bivol, 33, deserved the win, the way he was in retreat mode from the seventh round on, it was hard to see him deserving the win if you’re being fair. He got hurt in an exchange with Beterbiev and buckled under the nonstop pressure from the unified champion.
The scores were 116-112, 115-113 for Beterbiev, and 114-114.
“It’s the only fight for both. We have accepted,” said Eddie Hearn on Instagram when asked if the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol Rematch will happen next.
After six rounds, Beterbiev appeared to have Bivol’s defensive style figured out, and a rematch might continue what we saw in the later rounds with Artur in seek-and-destroy mode. Bivol didn’t show a willingness to stand and fight Beterbiev after he started to fire his thunderous bombs.
That was the main difference. If Beterbiev goes on the attack right from the start in the rematch, Bivol won’t last long under that kind of firepower because he doesn’t possess the chin or power to hold off the undisputed champion for long.
It makes sense for Hearn to want Bivol to fight Beterbiev next because if he faces one of the young light heavyweights, like David Benavidez or David Morrell, he won’t be able to handle their youth and power.
Hearn didn’t mention when he believes the Beterbiev vs. Bivol rematch will happen in 2025. The IBF has ordered Beterbiev to defend against his mandatory Michael Eifert. There’s a possibility that Beterbiev could either fight next or give Eifert a step aside.
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