Beterbiev: ‘Not alone at the top’ – but can he stay there after Bivol 2?

Artur Beterbiev is 44 days away from his February 22nd clash with Dmitri Bivol in Riyadh.

Undisputed light heavyweight champion Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) is looking to close out the season for the second time against Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs). He does this in a fashion that keeps fans and promoters from complaining like they used to do 24/7.

There are no more errors

The event on February 22 will be shown live on DAZN PPV. Many of the undercard bouts are arguably better than the main event.

Beterbiev’s 12-round majority win over Bivol in last year’s Oct. 12 fight wasn’t decisive enough to satisfy fans enough to allow him to move on to bigger and better things.

As such, Arthur is stuck doing it again, but this time, he is expected to attack Bivol relentlessly, chasing him around to find the match. Beterbiev’s mistakes in his fight with Bivol made it closer than it should have been.

Bivol unleashed a four-punch combo in the seventh round that angered Beterbiev. He was trying to do what he did to Arthur. Canelo Alvarez. That sparked Beterbiev’s competitive spirit and Bivol’s disdain, which has followed him ever since.

Can Bivol deliver standing up?

Arthur was finally one sided when Bivol began to load continuously. Dimitri seemed scared out of his wits and could not stand and fight. That was the fun part. Bivol was less daring than Beterbiev’s closest opponents, such as Anthony Yarde and Callum Smith.

Both men came to fight and tried to knock Beterbiev down. We didn’t see that from Bivol, who fought nervously for the second half and made the fight boring to watch. It was similar to how Dimitri fought in his match against Lyndon Arthur after being hurt by him in the championship rounds. After Bivol was cut, Arthur didn’t want any room to fight.

Beterbeev’s mistakes

• Starting off slow: He didn’t go on the offensive until the sixth round, and by then, Bivol had banked most of the first five rounds. Some believe Beterbiev did enough to win all five before turning the heat on him.
• Much respect to Bivol: Arthur seemed worried about hitting Bivol’s quick combinations in the first five rounds.

“There is a saying. At the top it is cold and lonely. I’m not at the top. I walk the earth. I’m not alone,” Artur Beterbiev told DAZN Boxing. “All my fans with me. proximate and natives.

Rain or snow is a champion 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗡 💪#BetterbievBivol2 | #Riyadh season | Feb 22, live on DAZN | @turki_alalshik pic.twitter.com/ger97OJdgi

— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) January 9, 2025