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Beterbiev is staking the three titles he is holding against the very dangerous Callum Smith
Both fighters have a very good knockout percentage with Beterbiev boosting with 100% knock out but Callum is also known as the guy who can deliver a good fight he is younger and more experienced than Beterbiev I'm sure Callum has learned a lot from his only loss against Canelo and he will use it against Beterbiev

So who you got in this fight?




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Although Smith is a good boxer, I don't think that he can upset Beterbiev here. I mean we have seen how Beterbiev's power and the only fighter that we are interested of him fighting next is Bivol for the unification fight.

No offense to Smith, this might be just another tune up fight for Beterbiev, stay busy fight before they can see if they can get Bivol next. Although the plan for Bivol right now is to rematch Canelo. But maybe down the line we might see Beterbiev vs Bivol. But currently, Beterbiev might stay active so that he won't have the ring rust because he is not getting any younger as well.

So I voted for: Beterbiev by knock out

I also got Beterbiev here to win by a knockout maybe in the later rounds, in his last fight against big Anthony Yarde, Beterbiev started slow and then Yarde found success in his counter punch.

But as soon as Arthur get a feel of the fight and just like a engine that started hot late, he was able to stop Yarde in 8th rounds.

And I don't think that Smith will be ready for a bruising fight against the power puncher in Anthony Beterbiev. So we might see 20 out of 20 knockout.

Callum Smith may have an edge when it comes to experience but Beterbiev can take punches and at the same time has power in both hands, I see Beterbiev chasing Callum, and when Beterbiev hit him with body punches the next that will fall is the head.
Beterieve will go to the body first then next to the head while he chases Callum because Callum has the height and reach advantage
he will use it and do a hit-and-run method as he did in his match against Canelo.

This match is very predictable unless Callum goes toe-to-toe which is very risky for him because Beterbiev can easily take him out
I hope after this fight we'll have an all-Russian match between Bivol - and Beterbiev for the undisputed light heavyweight championship.

I wouldn't say that Beterbiev is facing the very dangerous Callum Smith because I view the opposite thing especially when the name Artur Beterbiev is involved. Therefore, it is Callum Smith who will be facing the very dangerous and undefeated Artur Beterbiev who holds and boasts the 100% KO rate.

Smith might have a very decent knockout rate with over 70 percent but if we compared it to Beterbiev's, that somehow much lower and forgive me if it will make me sound that I underestimate Smith, but against the 3-belt champion? I seriously don't see this fight ending in the challenger's favor nor I don't even believe that this bout will be decided in hands of the judges.

I'm not surprised on the current result of the poll

If we have 50 voters all 50 voters who know Beterbiev and Smith will go for Beterbiev, Beterbiev is just too good for Smith and there are better fighters that Beterbiev fought in the past and he punished and knocks them all out, Smith is no different the poll should not be on the winner it's on what rounds Beterbiev will knock out Smith, if by chance there is an upset, it's going to be the biggest upset in the history of boxing.
Promoters should give the Biterbiev - Bivol match,  they deserve each other and it's long overdue.

@aioc. Hehe agreed. Also make it 7 votes including me.

In any case, on Bivol vs. Beterbiev, it appears that it is Beterbiev who is avoiding a chance for a unification of all the championships in their division. Bivol wants a challenge. There were some articles that mentioned Bivol wants to go down to super middleweight to fight Canelo for all his titles. A challenge which was certainly evaded by the Mexican hehehehe.

That is indeed obvious, as Callum Smith is no longer an undefeated boxer after his loss to Canelo. Perhaps Beterbiev is trying to find the right timing before fighting Bivol, as he is aware that he is not getting any younger. Although Beterbiev is known for his knockout power, he is already 38 years old, while Bivol is only 32 years old. Age is certainly a factor in boxing, and typically, at the age of 38, fighters are considered to be approaching retirement age.

Because Canelo knows that if ever he beats Bivol at a168 lbs, he will be criticized for that, and their first fight is 175 lbs, so why go down to 168 lbs if there is a rematch?

As for the upcoming fight, yes, Callum Smith has suffered a lost in the hands of Canelo and although this is a different weight class now and maybe this is his natural weight, it will be hard pressed to beat Beterbiev. Arthur remains to be the best in this division and the only true test for him is another Russian in Bivol.

I'm the 8th voter and yes, there's no other vote other than the "Beteriev by KO".

Callum Smith did survive the Canelo onslaught by this time around against the monster, I don't think he will still stand until the final bell sounds. Maybe this is some sort of a tune-up for Beterbiev before his promoter Uncle Bob finally agrees to a fight with Bivol for the unification. He may be 39 or 40 at that time so no more reason for Top Rank to still hold on to Beterbiev as he will be very old at that time.

If indeed Bivol vs Beterbiev will push through, this would be interesting as it will be dubbed as "Battle for Russia's King"  ;D.

What you said is quite debatable mate because I doubt that Beterbiev's supporters will just stay down and be quiet especially for this one because you did said that he was the one who was avoiding in making the unification fight happen. But I come in peace ;D just kidding.

That said, I'm both supporters of Bivol and Beterbiev, and I surely want to witness a unification fight between the both of them but unfortunately, that just cannot happen for now because the sanctioning bodies is not inclined in making it a reality because of Bivol's situation.

Source (https://boxing-social.com/news/bivol-blocked-from-beterbiev-undisputed/#:~:text=News-,Dmitry%20Bivol%20Will%20Be%20Blocked%20From%20Undisputed%20Fight%20Against%20Artur,status%20as%20a%20Russian%20national.)

And that is also the reason why Callum Smith was selected to fight Artur Beterbiev in the meantime.

Make my vote 9, Beterbiev has been fighting and cherry-picking fighters and he is not getting any younger anymore, he cannot establish his legacy for lack of real opponents that can challenge him, the organization and promoters should move to get the Bivol - Beterbiev, there's too much politics on boxing now that they don't want this to happen, and this is very unfortunate.
Even if it's a nontitle fight they should square off the ring to see who really is the best light heavyweight fighter in this generation.

 

Poll result = 100%  Beterbiev
Its not surprising. Beterbiev has 100% success rate in knocking his opponent. He is much dangerous than Bivol so theres no argument about that even if Smith has more ring experience.


Politics will find a way but its really going to be a big fight when they are match to someone from US and Mexico and not fight against fellow countrymen.

Hehe I am always first to admit if I am wrong. Thank you for this information. This has been rumored since 2022 when Bivol was chasing Beterbiev for a fight. However, everyone did not take the rumor much seriously and it was probably what started another rumor. Beterbiev is avoiding Bivol hehehehee.

In any case, it appears what prevents Bivol vs. Beterbiev is again politics. Similar to why much of the superfights are also not organized or takes too long to be organized.

^ WBA, WBC, IBF and basically under WBO though which if WBO mandate these fighters, the politics can no longer work for them. WBO rule them all.

All these politics can make fighters look like they are ducking each other but most probably they are just finding ways to make money for their organization.

Bivol however, if he fights Arthur, he might lose which these organization also try to meddle.

the fight will be held there in the city of Quebec where Beterbiev lives, so we have Beterbiev who is undefeated and a specialist in knockouts and will fight at home, I see this fight being a little disputed, although Callum Smith has had more fights and have only one defeat and Beterbiev had fewer fights compared to Callum Smith and didn't lose in any fight, Beterbiev has a clear advantage in this fight, he will be able to fight in his territory which facilitates a lot in his preparation, concentration and will have a lot support, not to mention that a fighter who has never lost is more confident in each fight, as he doesn't know the feeling of defeat so he just makes an effort not to lose in any fight

different from the case where a fighter who was undefeated loses a fight, when he goes to the fights that follow, this fighter has problems with his self-confidence, he knows he can lose and that this is something normal, because he himself has already lost so he will fight counting on an eventual defeat, in this part the trainers get irritated with the fighters during the fights, it is necessary to make the fighter angry so that he thinks like a winner and not like a loser something that is not easy, without a doubt that in this fight the greatest attention it's on Beterbiev, in my opinion Beterbiev will come out victorious in this fight, it won't be an early knockout fight, but he'll win the fight

I can also say and its safe to say that if Beterbiev fights Bivol he might lose also, both fighters are undefeated almost invincible in the ring, and the only way to figure this out is for them to fight in the ring, organizations where they belong should make it happen, it will be a pity if both fighters retire without taking each other, its a missed opportunity for them and a missed opportunity in boxing.
And both fighters will regret in the future why they have not moved mountains to face each other, we can say what if and speculate on the outcome.

The orgs sure can make it happen if they want to. From what I've read was that before they would give it  a green light they may have to make sure they have another dog to replace the losing one. A new breed of fighter shall emerge first among the ranking. They couldn't just afford to throw big shot fighters like Bivol or Beterbeiv under the bus wihtout prepared replacement. Same thing they didn't make Crawford and Spence happen yet.

The bookmakers can decide the odds whoever can possibly win. More than likely Beterbeiv.

As we can see here : https://www.oddschecker.com/boxing/artur-beterbiev-v-callum-smith/winner

Beterbiev is the heavy favorite with odds of 3/8 or -267 in American (Moneyline) format. It is evident that most of us believe he will win the fight. Callum Smith has already been exposed, so I think Beterbiev will be able to employ the right strategy to secure a knockout, which would further enhance his chances of securing a big fight in the future.

Another skull on Beterbievs belt/record. Either Smith was an obligatory contender for all those belt, or this is a cherry picked opponent (hard to believe in that) by Beterbiev. How Smith is planning to beat such a knockout master, when Beterbiev is a natural born light heavy, and Smith jumps from light heavy to middleweight ? Smith has been LH only in last two fights. All the time he was 73kg all the time. This is gonna be a Bivol vs Canelo copy/paste fight, but with a KO in first half of the fight.

I hope he wins so that we can finally witness a significant fight this year. Just imagine, it's Bivol who defeated Canelo, and with his name generating buzz, I'm confident that the promoter will have an easier time selling this fight. Moreover, it's a unification bout, which is sure to pique the interest of fans.

If the fight does take place, it is uncertain who will be favored, but it is likely that the younger champion will be given the edge.

Yeah, the only thing that is the big hindrance for a Bivol vs Beterbiev fight from happening is their promotional company. We all know that Eddie Hearn and Bob Arum are bitter rivals and even goes to the media and attack each other.

So I don't know if this fight is doable, unless both of them can sit down and have a consensus who is going to be the A-side in this fight.

For Smith, good luck to him, this is a tough fight for him.

I got no doubts for Artur Beterbiev's skills and capabilities which is why I voted him to win this fight via KO. Callum Smith is unfortunately will not be that evident in-front of the man who fought with 100 knockout rate and I'm not really convinced that he will be the one who can stop that streak that Beterbiev has. Other than that, yes, he was already exposed which is also part of the reason why I did not vote him as well as other users here in this forum.

You're always welcome mate, I'm happy to help! ;)

Now, the important thing is you already know what are the true reasons why the undisputed fight between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol is not happening and sadly, I'm almost convinced considering Beterbiev's current situation now that he might have to retire first before any of this unification fight against Bivol will happen as the Russian-Canadian boxer is already 38 years old which means he might have a couple of years ahead of him left before he starts to consider in hanging up his gloves.

And if that will happen, I hope Beterbiev can retire with a spotless record in his whole professional career in the boxing industry.

I thought Artur Beterbiev's next fight will be against Dmitry Bivol and he even voiced it out and express his interest in the post-fight interview after his dominant win against Anthony Yarde last January retaining his WBC, IBF, and WBO Light-heavyweight titles. I don't know what is the hindrance why Beterbiev-Bivol seems not a priority. Bivol's last fight was in November last year and yet no signs of his next fight.

I've just learned that the deal was won by the Top Rank Promotions.

And guess what, obviously as a champion, the purse split for this match is 70/30, in favor of Artur Beterbiev.

Still boils down as who manages Bivol and his citizenship, there were even reports that his purse was still in limbo when he fought and won against Canelo, so not just if he has been paid already since there is a boycott amongst Russian athletes, (not just boxers).

Beterbiev is under Top Rank, and he has been fighting under the Canadian flag or at least his residency is Canada for many years now. And then again, Bivol is with Eddie Hearn's Marchroom and this is the one preventing this two to fight, both of their manager doesn't want to sit down and negotiate for a unification fight.

But if the money is right, then maybe Arum and Hearn can sit down and step aside their difference and make this fight, make sense right? Politics destroys some of the potential fight that we might not see in the future, but I believed that it can also make this manager settle down if there is money in the table to make as boxing is business.

Maybe not now, Bivol will have to challenge Canelo first at 175 lbs and if he won then maybe we can talk about the potential fight with Beterbiev because there's no one in the light heavyweight that they haven't fought.

Artur Beterbiev is a professional boxer born in Russia and has won many titles, even in the World Championships he won gold and the IBF, WBC and WBO titles.
He is a fighter with many KO wins so I also believe that Artur Beterbiev will beat Callum Smith by knockout finish.
I don't think Callum Smith is a match for Artur Beterbiev for this fight.
Anyone who likes boxing will definitely support and risk victory for Artur Beterbiev.

Because Beterbiev has a mandatory title defence against Smith. I think it was announced long time ago. And on time frame, Smith fought last fight was later than Bivols last fight. Smith has no time to wait, as his last fight was in August 20 2022. Cant find the link to article, but Smith fight Beterbiev due to some clause in contract, as the fight will be August 19 2023 - 364th day after his previous fight. Perhaps (but cant be 100% sure), but there must be a clause in his contract that he must fight one a year. Or he will be paid for a pause. Big bosses did not want to lose money, but preferred rather to earn. That is why we have this fight imho.

There's no problem with this fight, though Smith is also a decent fighter. However, we cannot ignore the majority's expectation that Beterbiev will have an easy win. Based on the poll results, all the voters have predicted 'Beterbiev by knockout,' implying that most people see this as a one-sided fight.

We don't need to speculate too much, let's just wait for the outcome of this fight, and hope that if Beterbiev will win the fight, he will go with a unification fight with Bivol.

Soon Beterbiev (after fight with Bivol) will be in same trap Canelo is now. There will no more opponents left to beat. I mean real opponents, real danger. Right now he is already in a situation, when no matter who his opponent is, people consider this would be an easy fight for him. To bad that he is a knockout master more than a technician. A knockout make his wins look more easy. If there will be no real thread to him in next few years, he will be forced to move to cruiserweight. Otherwise like you've said, it will be "one-sided fights" and people will start to lose interest in him. That is why I sometimes wish strong boxers to lose. To feel that taste of a loss, to find new motivation to fight, to get interest to his person back.

That is if he will ever face Bivol after this one, otherwise he will really need to move up to Cruiserweight because as you have said, nothing to fight in this division as he single handled clean up he division.

I think he will be fine in the next weight class, if my memory serves me right, him and Usyk has history in the amateurs before, and now we've seen Usyk moving from CW to HW and becoming one of the best pound for pound fighters and making huge money as well. But time is not on the side of Beterbiev though, he might have like 2-3 good years in him.

I'm following the vote count and its still zero for Smith I hope whoever votes for Smith will care to explain his logic on why he voted for Smith, I'm sure his reason is he wants to take a risk or he believes in upsets, yes upset could happen but it's very slim to happen in this case, Beterbiev is getting better and Callum Smith's performance in his last fight is not that good, this is actually a tune fight in case there is an order or a negotiation to fighting Bivol, his real nemesis in that division.

well, we already know the favourite here even if it is not yet available from bookies. beterbiev is clearly the favourite here. but if the odds is like 1.0x in favour of beterbiev, look for other betting lines which is worth to place bet on like if this will go the distance or what round will it finish?
early betting odds is showing that beterbiev has about 90% chance to win over smith. and since smith knows about the current pulse, he can very well prepare to be his best version, who knows?

Smith hasn't executed his reach advantage in his bout against Canelo so what difference will it make against a tougher Beterbeiv. Not a very exciting fight really when gamblers already see posibilities just by the odds alone. Beterbiev by KO that could possibly retire Smith.

Nothing is more exciting fight anymore unless they make Bivol vs AB happen.

Even though Callum Smith previously had 2 belts on super middleweight division, but I don't think he's able to beat Beterbiev, this looks like an another easy fight and Beterbiev will win via KO again.

Yeah there's no way to avoid this big fight, despite Beterbiev has a fantastic record, but I think Bivol would able to beat Beterbiev because he previously had beat the crowd and the judges e.g. won over Canelo.

I totally agree here that Bivol will beat Beterbiev once they meet. Styles makes a fight in boxing and Bivol got those boxing skills up a notch than that of AB. Bivol got good defense and can last for 12 rounds if needed unlike Beterbiev where all of his fights ended via KOs, facing a talent like Bivol would give him a problem as it will test his stamina.

I do hope that this Bivol and AB unification fight will happen this year also, 2023 would be the greatest year in boxing history as most of the fight that fight fans wanted to happen has come to reality.

And closely considering about the situation they have now, the unification fight between Bivol and Beterbiev will have to wait at least for a couple of years because the sanctioning bodies are still not inclined to give Bivol that kind of fight as because of the war, his status are also dragged for being a Russian which also gives him enough advantage because if the time will happen sooner, Beterbiev is already old by that time. Might be sad to think but that is the situation they have right now and if I'm not mistaken, Bivol still have not received his fair share in his fight with Canelo as that fight happened in US soil.

Although Bivol and his camp shows intentions already to make this fight with Beterbiev. However, Beterbiev will have to go and win against Smith first. The thoughts of this 2 Russians fighting for the unification came to fruition when Bivol and his camp are not satisfied with what Canelo is offering them for a rematch. For them at least a good 50/50 split will make sense since Bivol already beat Canelo in their first fight. But it seems Canelo still wanted to get the biggest split of the purse and the money in the table which for now Bivol and his team rejected.

I've read Canelo's announcement and its arrogant for him to give Bivol that kind of a deal he was dominated, if he wants to avenge his loss and prove that he can beat the guy he should have given Bivol a fair deal to make the fight happen, Canelo knows Bivol will not accept the offer so Canelo can justify why he doesn't want to fight Bivol.

Light heavyweight will never be Canelo's territory because it is ruled by two of the most powerful punchers in Bivol and Beterbiev, Canelo should not over-extend himself.

For starters, Canelo should know that he was the one who started the war even though he was not on Bivol's radar as they were in a separate weight class but Canelo tried to take advantage of the situation and thought that Bivol was not that hard to defeat as he only have a single belt in his possession, moreover, his success few years back against Kovalev made up his mind that LHW is not that much.

Now look at him, after starting a war, he is now on a disadvantageous side waiting for a chance that Bivol will accept his deal but it seems that the latter is not interested anymore as in the first place, there's nothing for Bivol to gain unless Canelo agrees to fight him at super-middle.

I guess his process for citizenship is still going on and with the current situation, he might have to wait for some years for that because the first world countries are pressing some pressures towards Russian athletes even though they are not directly connected with what happened. It's a shame though because the entertainment industry has been affected because of that.

Bob Arum already said before that after Beterbiev's fight with Anthony Yarde, he will agree to a possible unification fight as long as he will be the one to organize it and not Hearn as they are on the A-side. There are some spicy words of course about Matchroom and its viewers but the point is, Arum is only willing as long as his conditions is met. Sadly, there is another roadblock that prevented the unification fight from happening, and that is Bivol's nationality.

So let's see if Eddie Hearn will allow that, recently, him and Bob Arum has been talking against each other, for one, Arum says that Hearn hasn't done anything as a promoter in the US soil. While Hearn responded that Arum is slipping and then there are better promoters than him, including his very own Match Room. So I doubt that this is very easy to make, unless they become professional and sit down and just talk about the money. But I guess the best catch here would be a 50/50 split in revenue. So let's see if the fight can happen in the future. There are too many obstacles and hurdles to overcome.

So far though, in this fight, it's Beterbiev by knock out.

That's the expectation of the majority if he wins this fight, considering he is a 100% KO artist. Smith has not been knocked out yet in his career, so let's see what possibilities arise. However, regardless of the outcome, I don't see Smith winning the fight. His success will depend solely on whether he can survive against a 100% KO artist.

Beterviev is a monster. He just got in the square less than 10 years and have already showed dominance over other fighter on his weight class. Stats would speak for himself as supported by how did his fights went. I do appreciate Simth's capabilities but I'd be on Artur's for this fight. But I guess it this would be a tough one andhas a chance to result in a decision especially if Smith would not be aggressive as with some of his fights. For sure he knows how powerful Artur is, and he wouldn't more likely force this fight out.I second this fact that Smith is careful with his fights. He tend to be avoidant with in-fights especially if the opponent is wishing for it. Quite of a smart guy, indeed but yes as majority views this fight, hard to see artur losing.

Bob Arum should know Eddie Hearn's situation because Bob Arum doesn't have any Russian boxers in his stable that actually lives in Russia because if he were in Hearn's shoes, I don't think that Arum will just let the fight happen in US soil even if it's not going to have any benefit for his own boxers. As a promoter for Bivol, Hearn surely knows how to handle a business that will include his own boxer and not just for the promoter's sole benefit.

Most probably, this unification discussion between them will take at least couple of months before they reach a deal with of course, Arum and Beterbiev in the A-side and of course, his network handling it. But even so, there's the WBC who will not let that happen as the council have strongly objected about that possibility.

Being a 38 years old and having 10 years in his professional record, the Russian-Canadian monster are still showing no signs that he is already vulnerable. Judging from his recent fights, he may not have the right speed to outdo his opponents but he does have the talent and IQ for which he knew exactly when to give his heavy punches that will literally knock somebody down.

In this instance, Smith might able to survive the whole 12-round fight if he will successfully shake off Beterbiev's punches as he's quite smart enough and careful not to add an embarrassment in his career. Anyway, he still got 70+ days to prepare for the fight and hopefully we can witness another entertaining fight.

I agree, he hasn't show any signs that he is slowing down. And if my memory serves me right, he doesn't have any injuries as well, so he is very durable. Of course, no one can defeat Father time, sooner or later we will see him declining. But as per his trainer and Bob Arum, Beterbiev is still the puncher that he is and can still fight at a high level. And that's why Smith's chances are very slim in this fight, and majority thinks that this might be a easy fight for Arthur and maybe next we can talk about him and Bivol for a 4 belt fight in Light HW.

There's no doubt that Beterbiev has the huge advantage in this fight and I predicted that this is also an easy knockout for him. These people doesn't know Beterbiev and he already improved a lot since his last fight. It won't take too long until Smith will feel the heavy power punches and surely he can't handle that for long. They feel comfortable until they felt those unusual punches that will eventually shake them and knock them down to the ground just like anybody else in his last fights.

He started slow though against Yarde, and I think Yarde could have won the early rounds and he said that it as the strategy, to preserved his stamina along the way. But as soon as Beterbiev got his rhythm, it's just a matter of time before he scored a knockout or technical knockout and that's what happen to that fight.

So if Smith can used the same strategy and caught Beterbiev early, then it might be a good fight. But Beterbiev is very dangerous, just 1 punch can change the fight. And if he caught Smith clean then it might be over. Smith is not known to have a good chin and if Beterbiev's land his signature hook, then book another knockout on his record.

If I can recall it correctly, that was Beterbiev's technique since then as he'd like to feel his opponent first before engaging in a slugfest and see who will survive and who will kiss the canvass first. Callum Smith can use that as an advantage to be aggressive in the first three rounds where Beterbiev is still feeling everything but he should be careful as well because the latter can be unpredictable at times and he might caught a heavy punch if he's not that cautious.

Interesting that Top Rank/ESPN once again beat Matchroom/DAZN in the purse bid. I'm just glad this fight is not happening in Smith's backyard otherwise the judges will once again favor the Briton just like during the Yarde fight.

I believe Mundo's chin is tough as hell but we'll see how tough is it when he is facing a champion with a 100% KO rate. I am seeing Beterbiev scoring another stoppage in the middle or late in the fight. But considering Beterbiev's age of 38, I won't be surprised that one of his opponents these days will end his undefeated streak. Callum is a good fighter so there's also the chance that he is the one to exploit Beterbiev's age.

The fans are craving a Beterbiev-Bivol unification fight and we might not really see it. Maybe this is still doable if DAZN allows Bivol to fight at ESPN. But I also wonder if Top Rank and ESPN would risk it knowing Beterbiev's end will come to an end sooner or later if he won't retire.

Not going to argue that one but as of now, in this upcoming fight, I don't see that Beterbiev's KO streak will be ended by Smith and it is a great news as well that it will not happen in Smith's backyard. I know he's quite durable but I would like to see Beterbiev testing his chin so that we can see if it's made of glass or not as I don't think that someone could survive and just shake it off after receiving a clean blow from the 3-belt champion. Maybe someone in the future when Beterbiev will be much older but in this case, I don't think so.

Beterbiev at 38 can still dominate a fight, that age is still young even though many considered the age as past prime.  With his 100% KO ratio, we all know how devastating his punches are.  So more likely Smith will end up kissing the canvas if he became careless. But at the same time, we can't underestimate Smith's sharp left hook which often renders his opponent unable to continue the fight.  So this fight is a matter of who will connect a devastating punch first making us to say that the fight can go either way.

Beterbiev's chin is no longer the same as before as evidenced during the Yarde fight although it is still tough so we will see if Mundo can land his bombs on that chin. If this fight happened some years ago, Beterbiev will definitely shrug the power punches off. Beterbiev had been hit a lot by stronger opponents in the past, especially by the best opponent in his career so far, the batchmate and friend of Usyk and Loma, the former lineal champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk. Beterbiev would've lost that fight if not for iron chin.

All if not most are expecting another KO win by Beterbiev so maybe he should be given a shot at Bivol for a chance to become undisputed. Bivol's team is reluctant to give in to Canelo's demands for a rematch so hopefully, a deal with Beterbiev happens. It will be a very interesting and exciting fight. Bivol is not Gvozdyk but with Beterbiev's current reflexes, he should be able to outpoint him. But as always, a single well-timed clean power punch from Beterbiev will change the outcome of the fight.     

Canelo still have the leverage over getting big cuts even when he is only a leftover. Can't say he doesn't have a place but because the promotion is with him, he can dictate terms.
Bivol vs AB I guess will happen if that is the case. Which promotion will take them can be a question. Would it be easy to promote a fight where the main event are both Russian? Adding big names in the main card will probably make the hype.

Yes, it is true that Canelo still have the leverage to be in the A-side after all what happened to him recently but asking for a rematch while having the same terms? That is quite absurd because they thought that Bivol will just agree with it just because fighting Canelo is a sure money, but no. Bivol's camp and manager, Vadim Kornilov, is not interested with it as they think that Canelo is just underestimating them for giving the same terms instead of him chasing them as Canelo was the one who lost the first fight.

If Canelo Alvarez will still try and push a rematch while having the same terms and having him in the A-side will indeed make the fight seems impossible to materialize because chasing for a rematch means that he needs to be humble too while accepting the fact that the A-side will not belong to him anymore. After all, he should make all amends as possible so that he can get the approval from Bivol's camp as currently, they are not interested as they have their eyes set to another prize.

I hope he will realize that the terms have to change since this is a rematch, and he wants to redeem himself against Bivol. It will not work if he expects a bigger share in the fight, considering that Bivol is the current champion and the one who defeated him in their previous fight. In my opinion, that's being greedy and unfair in terms of the proper way of negotiation. Although this mostly revolves around money, respect is a must for the fighter who is at the top.

Making a Bivol as their business logo of their camp, we cannot blame them if they try and impose the same terms on Bivol for the said rematch because who knows, Bivols camp might agree with it as Canelo can always offer a much bigger fight than anybody he had fought with. But since Bivol's camp have already said that they are not going to be interested if it's the same term, then Canelo and his camp together with Eddie Hearn should adjust with it so that they can make the fight happen.

It's easy to understand Canelo doesn't want to fight Bivol and he wants to impose to show that he is A level here because it will boost his confidence, Bivol's camp is right in his decision not to fight him and let it stay for the record that Bivol beat Canelo decisively, on Canelo's first loss against Mayweather his alibi is he is too young when he fought Mayweather and now he cannot make a rematch because Floyd is already retired, I don't think that he can make a valid alibi that he cannot fight Bivol because he wants to impose the same terms.
In the future Canelo cannot make that alibi if ever their rematch did not push through, he has to protect his legacy and he can do that by beating Bivol and even the score.

I wonder why there are no people talking about this fight these days, I think maybe because Beterbiev is not fighting against some great contender available in their weight division and Smith is just some other boxer that he will gonna beat easily in their upcoming fight. Nevertheless, this is another good warm-up fight for Beterbiev because after this, he might get the best fight he really wanted all these years and we know that he is not gonna be coming for the title, he just wanted to beat everyone out there that are at the top of their weight division.

That may be the reason why when a highly popular boxer chooses to fight against an opponent who is clearly expected to lose, it can dampen the excitement. Perhaps they need to enhance their public relations efforts and generate some hype for this fight if possible. Ultimately, it's still about the money they'll generate from this fight. The fact that this fight is happening signifies that the promoters believe it will be a profitable event.

Maybe, but you have to understand that there are a lot of fight this coming July, so fans are more interested on,

Spence vs Crawford, Inoue vs Fulton, and Donaire vs Santiago.

And what we want to see in this weight division is a unification fight between Beterbiev and Bivol, but not going to happen because of boxing politics as we all know of. And this could be just another get busy fight for Beterbiev, he needs to be active as he is not getting any younger.

He truly needs a big fight to further showcase his greatness, just like how Canelo proved himself when he became undisputed. Perhaps Canelo would be interested in fighting Beterbiev, but the potential issue could lie in the income sharing between them. Knowing Canelo, he would always seek a bigger slice of the pie, as seen in his stance against Bivol, which is why the latter did not accept the offer.

Aside from that, avid boxing fans are not that inclined or interested to see this fight that is why it's not gaining any attention from the public since it was announced because no offense to Callum Smith and to his fans, people just don't see him to make any difference and winning because Beterbiev is just on a different league compared to him.

Smith will just be an additional to Beterbiev's record and will be among those boxers who have been defeated by a way of KO/TKO that will cement his legacy further.

And so I did watch some clips of Beterbiev and it's really scary how powerful his punches are because it the clip was from just a cellphone so it's very raw and the one taking it is on the ringside.

You can hear his punches once it landed on his opponent and you can see the opponents face. He just grimaces in pain and just take a knee and maybe hoping that the fight will be over.

I feel you mate, I just found out last year too that there is this three-belt champion called Artur Beterbiev who is secretly dominating in the light-heavyweight division. I cannot deny that boxers in this category are not making enough noise in the division because there are some weight classes in the lower division that are quite packed compared to this division where we only know a handful of boxers.

There's not much noise when only one champion is ruling in one weight division like what Inoue is doing in his division, there's a huge demand for the Bivol - Beterbiev fight because they are the only fighters who's been ruling this division, once they met and one of them become an undisputed champion, the division is not challenging anymore.
Though welterweight is very different because its a category that is laden with talented boxers but in the light heavyweight everything is quiet here, there's not much controversy.

Not really comparable to Naoya Inoue's time when he was still in bantamweight division, yes he may be the strongest in that division but there are others as well who would want to take a piece from him and one of them is John Riel Casimero. These two names have been frequently called to see who is indeed the stronger one, we can only speculate who because fate is not that interested to make it happen, as of now.

So now that Canelo Alvarez had signed a 3-fight deal with PBC, Bivol was hanging without an opponent. A pursuit of unifying the belt against the 3-belt holder Artur Beterbiev is in the picture but I wonder if both networks and promoters agree to a deal. But the longer this plays out, the more Beterbiev is disadvantaged due to his age so there is also the possibility that Top Rank and ESPN may not really want to match them unless Bivol can be signed by Top Rank.

DAZN and Eddie Hearn should let Bivol have a 1 or 2 fight deal under the exclusive rights of Top Rank and ESPN if they really want to happen it ASAP. The WBC is all about money so greedy Sulaiman can cancel or make an exemption on its nonsense ban on Russian fighters when given the right amount of cheque.

Well, to be honest, I pretty much hope that WBC will be bribed easily and that the right amount will do the trick to make the undisputed fight into reality before Beterbiev starts considering his retirement. I mean, the man is just a few years away from being a 40 years old and before his retirement phase, at least he can have that fight because it will be total waste if he will retire without having any chance of cementing his legacy.

If there will be no pressure from someone above, I think they can get the WBC's approval with the right figure since they are the only ones who are making a stand to stop the undisputed fight from happening. Other than that, both camps can begin their negotiation and it will be a smooth sailing discussion as long as Eddie Hearn will let Bob Arum to organize it as the latter have the right to demand because it is his boxer who got more belts to offer.

WBC should start to look on the bright side and just accept any offer that is presented on the horizon, there's no need for them to enforce these pressures because in the first place, these Russian boxers have nothing to do with what is happening up North, they are just a private individual who seeks a better future inside the boxing industry. It would be unfair if they will still enforce it these days as that's just like the same as racial profiling, sadly.

Bob Arum already said himself that the undisputed fight will not happen this year because WBC is still not inclined about it.
Link: https://www.boxingnews24.com/2023/06/dmitry-bivol-vs-artur-beterbiev-wont-happen-this-year-says-bob-arum/#:~:text=By%20Sean%20Jones%3A%20Top%20Rank,current%20ban%20on%20Russian%20athletes.

That is a sad news because we are hoping that somehow this year, they can make a slight negotiation about the said undisputed fight while also working their permit with WBC in the safe side. Among the four sanctioning bodies, only the WBC is making a stand and while the remaining three seems inclined towards the fight because it's a nice paycheck for them.

And Bob Arum said he is in favor of WBC's Russian ban which means he is not also willing to make the fight. I honestly, do not get it, Bivol is an individual fighter, it's not like he is a billionaire or a hundred-million-dollar guy that is remitting huge sums of money to his native homeland. It doesn't make any sense and good thing the other 3 sanctioning bodies and even the UFC the leading MMA organization are not making a ban on individual athletes that needs to earn a living. I even doubt Beterbiev himself is not remitting money to his native Russia where 99% of his relatives and lots of friends are still there.

It's just hypocrisy, especially from the WBC, a known money-first and corrupt organization. I wish they never recovered from that bankruptcy when they lost a case many years ago.

Beterbiev is a nice guy but an upset win by Mundo is good for boxing as I am pretty sure Hearn is willing to pit him against Bivol for the undisputed belts.

Everything that is in regards with the undisputed fight in the light-heavyweight division is quite blurry as of the moment and just like what is said above, there is no signs as well that it may happen this year or even next year because while there is still a tension between Russia and Ukraine, Dmitry Bivol is still banned to participate such big fight.

And for this Mundo, no offense but I just don't think that he got some skills and the right capabilities to be the first one to deliver Beterbiev's defeat in his career. Eventually, Callum Smith will just be a mere additional to Beterbiev's list that he got KO'd.

I think it's more to that, I mean we all know that Arum will have to milk Beterbiev and he doesn't want Arthur to fight someone that will be a threat to him. I believed that Bivol has a chance, with his volume punching, it might take a tool on Beterbiev later on the fight.

So for me Arum is just hiding, and using the WBC as a reason not to fight Bivol. But so far, if they have clean the division already then there is no one to fight but Bivol in the end. So sooner or later maybe we will see it, perhaps in the next 2-3 years, when Beterbiev is on the declined. At least if he lost, Arum has made a lot of money already.

Arum is a master of his job; he knows what he is doing, which is why he is very successful in this business. His statements do not necessarily mean they are true, and as long as he continues to make money, he'll ensure that his lucrative boxer continues to produce for him. Risking against a good boxer is not in his vocabulary, unless he is very confident about Beterbiev, who could be the best in the world in any division he is capable of fighting.

Yeah, but at the back of my mind, I think Arum wanted this fight, or at least because of the potential money that he will have to make here. But if there are sanctions against Russian boxer, like in the case of Bivol then maybe for now he has no intentions about setting up the fight.

But if everything has settles down, maybe Beterbiev vs Bivol can happen in the future for unification. There is no risk for him, he is a business man and he wants to stay on top of this game. One thing though is that Bivol is still with his rival Match Room and Eddie Hearn and that could be a very important issue to settle because they sit down and talk and have their boxers fight each other.

Well, yes, Bob Arum wanted to make this fight and he's been already open for some negotiations from the opposite camp under one condition; he will organize it and not Eddie Hearn as they got more food to put on the table.

But knowing Bob Arum and how he works mysteriously, I believe that they are still finding the right time to talk with the WBC president so that this fight will finally materialize and besides, they know that their time is running because Artur Beterbiev is already approaching its sunset. They couldn't afford to say good bye to this opportunity while people are still asking for it.

Bad news! Champion is once again injured. This is really the disadvantage of an old athlete competing in the hurt business. He is currently the oldest world champion if I am not mistaken. Maybe Callum can pull a huge upset if he is able to catch Beterbiev first.

https://www.talkimg.com/images/2023/07/31/QbiRo.png

If Beterbiev beats Callum, he better strongly demands a Bivol fight next or he should move up in weight for a chance to become a 2-division world champion if he wants to enter the Hall of Fame. Too bad, the guy that beat, knocked down, hurt, and had a hotly contested trilogy in the amateurs against the legendary Oleksandr Usyk is not entering the Hall of Fame.

Thanks @robelneo for re-opening this thread, the fight is still a go, Jan. 13 at Quebec,


https://www.boxingscene.com/beterbiev-smith-championship-clash-rescheduled-jan-13-quebec-city--176776

And with Bivol fighting this weekend, and if he wins then he should wait for Beterbiev part to win this fight as well.

Mega fight maybe in the middle of the year, unification fight for LHW, between this two great fighter.

Thank you to @Baofeng for reminding me about this fight we have a new date and hopefully, it will finally push

And here is the current result of the poll, hmmm it seems nobody's giving Smith a chance to beat Beterbiev, after Beterbiev and Bivol dispose of their respective opponents it is time for them to settle who among the two is the best Russian boxer.

Beterbiev by knockout   - 22 (100%)
Beterbiev by decision   - 0 (0%)
Smith by knock out   - 0 (0%)
Smith by decision   - 0 (0%)
Draw   - 0 (0%)

I just check the odds on my favorite sports bookies and I'm not surprised that Smith is close to 4:1 underdog by today's line. Beterbiev is really scary even at his age, he still possesses that knockout power and I don't know how Smith can stay away from that.

Maybe in the first couple of rounds he could avoid it, or maybe Beterbiev is a slow starter. But once he gets on his range and groove on the fight, he simply will steam roll any of his opponents and this could include Smith. And as we can see on those votes, majority of boxing fans thinks that Beterbiev will continue to win by knockout. Of course the fight that we want is him and fellow Russian Bivol next.

^^ Yes that is the odds usually if you are going to face Beterbiev as he hasn't lose and all of his opponent getting knockout. So we are not sure what kind of strategy Smith is going to do in their fight. He can't just go toe to toe as Beterbiev has the power.

But then again how can you beat this guy? He also has a solid chin, and then once he smell that you are about to go down, he will go after you put you in the corner and then throw bombs. I do agree that the fight that we are waiting is the unification with another great LHW in Bivol.

Beterbiev is a perfect predator, he can hurt but you cannot hurt, he can beat anybody but then again he is not getting any younger he is now 38 years old and age will have an impact on his future fights, while Bivol is only 33 years still on his prime, in this fight against Smith we'll see if age has finally caught up with Beterbiev or he still maintain his power just like before.
Beterbiev is the overwhelming favorite and so is Bivol in his coming fight, these two must fight they arenot getting younger, they have to settle this once and for all.

We will see if age will impact Bivol in this fight, I do agree at 38 years of age, we might see some wear and tear on him, signs like injury (which he does), is showing. But it looks like he is still very hungry and wanted to unify the belt against Bivol and that is his plan.

And I think the feeling is mutual for Bivol, after he wins tonight, for sure he will call out Bivol.

It's just a matter of negotiations, if Frank Warren and and Eddie Hearn can settle their differences and make a great card in Saudi tonight, then for sure, Top Rank and Vadim Kornilov, Bivol's manager can sit down and talk and make this blockbuster fight.

^^ It's all about the money, and obviously, Beterbiev is not getting any younger so he should be looking for the money fight with his fellow Russian Bivol. Bivol said that he already smells his victory in tonight's fight. And chances are very high and if likely to happen.

And so it's time for Beterbiev to win against Smith, he is the huge favorite. And after that, negotiations can start and maybe in the middle of next year, we will finally see this fight happening as boxing fans are eager to see who's going to be on top. It's like Crawford vs Spence unification type of hype, both undefeated and great boxers.

Warren and Hearn already bring us a great fight in the Middle East, so there's no question that they can make this fight. I think it's easy to negotiate with Kornilov as well, him and Eddie Hearn has work before. And so there's no like ego flying around for this fight, 2 Russians that want to settle everything so it will be good.

So let's wait for Beterbiev to win, again, we don't like derailing of fight. Just like what happen to Wilder against Parker. We will see first if Bivol still has it and can pull the trigger and hopefully he can so that next year, another unification is on the line, this time it will be in the Light Heavyweight.

I know, he is like a predator no expression whatsoever when he goes to fight anyone. He might have a slow start though, but once he get that engine inside of him, he is scary because he will be just in you face fighter that maybe some of his opponents are already intimated seeing him in that kind of mode.

Bivol already won his fight, so it's up to Beterbiev against Smith. But if Beterbiev is still very hungry and I believed he is, this fight against Smith is not going to last the full 12 rounds and Beterbiev will knockout Smith.

It has been a long time and these should have been fought a long time ago no rule in world boxing prohibits two fighters from the same country not to fight, they should not impose that on themselves, Beterbiev is aging but still dangerous no boxer has ever come close to hurting him but his record and legacy is questionable as long as both he and Bivol cannot meet each other in the ring,
I hope there will be no Wilder-like scenario in this fight against Smith, we want both fighters to meet in the ring with unblemished records so they will be motivated to go all out when they meet.

I think it's not that they are in the same country, it's the usual boxing politics that could have delayed this fight. And then there is the issue of geo-politics that time and still up to this time, when Russia invaded Ukraine.

And there's news that they hold Bivol pay when he won against Canelo, but not sure if he has been paid already. Beterbiev and Arum claims that Arthur lives in Canada.

I do hope that everything is clear so that we can see this fight and also for unification as this is the current trend in boxing right now.

I do agree that they should have fought before, but it make sense for it that this two should face because I will say that Bivol is not that well known until he beat Canelo. But then again, we all know that boxing politics really goes in the way for making this big fights.

But the Saudis shows that in can be done, because they have big money to begin with and promoters are willing to sit down now to talk and make such fight s proven by the Day of Reckoning a week back wherein the card are stack up, including Bivol.

That is a very lopsided poll. Beterbiev has a perfect knockout record so it makes sense that everyone believes he will win this fight by stoppage. There are many doubts about Callum Smith. His win against John Ryder was questionable and against Canelo he didn't let his hands go and got dominated. The only question about Beterbiev is whether he is starting to decline. At 38, his reflexes might not be the same. Smith will have to show some initiative instead of just absorb punches. He has a better chance than most people anticipate but it depends on whether he can impose his style without getting intimidated by Beterbiev's power.

These boxing fighters are people who try very hard, the champion months ago suffered a bone infection in his jaw, according to news sites this infection in his jaw was caused by dental treatment, which meant that the fight that was supposed to take place take place on August 19th would be postponed. So far so good, because getting sick is part of life, and something that happens to everyone. but when a person becomes ill, they mainly undergo surgery and in this case it was surgery on the jaw, which is a very sensitive place for boxer fighters, the fighter stops training for a long time because he cannot suffer a blow in that region of the jaw while he is still alive. is recovering from treatment

I'm not a doctor, but it seems to me that he would need a long time without a trainer to be cured, so the champion must have spent months without a trainer or if he didn't spend many months without training and only spent a few months without training, then he did training lightweights that didn't involve receiving a punch, so I'm wondering if he really has as much of an advantage in this fight as many people have said, Smith had much more time to train and didn't suffer any serious injuries that would have forced him to stop. training, so it seems to me that this would be a fight in which Smith may have a chance of winning, he is being underestimated. But I still see him with a chance of winning. This fight hasn't been added to the stake yet, I'll see when the fight is added what the odds will be for each fighter

So lopsided that the discussion is not about who's going to win but on what round Beterbiev will knock out Smith, honestly I don't want to see this kind of fight although Smith is a decent fighter, but Beterbiev is just so good that any decent fight will look like a class b fighter against him.

This is a cherry-picked fight how I wish the promoters and the organizations stop putting this kind of fight and just unify the titles so there will be one champion, so the Beterbiev - Bivol fight should happen.
We don't want to see these two guys fight in the exhibition or when they are already, the promoters must make it happen now that they are at the peak of their boxing careers.

I do agree but it's boxing politics that really prevented us seeing big names like Bivol vs Beterbiev. Callum Smith might be a decent fighter, but he could still be the next victim of Beterbiev's power. But in any case, if this is a cherry pick fight, then so be it. However, if he wins here, I do hope that Top Rank will have to schedule their man Beterbiev vs Bivol.

There's no way that they can avoid each other, they are the only 2 champions in this division. And with the way fighters are reaching in this generation, they are going at a unification like Inoue, Crawford and Canelo at 168 lbs.

It's not just boxing politics but also global politics. The WBC banned Russian athletes from competing for their title. They have stated that Bivol is not eligible to fight for their belt, although for some reason Beterbiev is still allowed. Other sanctioning organizations have implemented a similarly stupid rule. https://www.badlefthook.com/2022/3/1/22956803/wbc-wbo-ibf-refuse-certify-title-fights-russian-belarusian-fighters-boxing-news-2022

Now that Saudia Arabia seems willing to offer a lot of money to make it happen, perhaps the organizations will do what's best for the sport even if they do it for entirely selfish reasons.

The boxing scenario is very different in this generation, in the past, they had a saying to be the best you have to beat the best, so they united titles, and promoters were more than willing to fit the best in their respective divisions, which is why in the past there are lineal champions.

But now we have so many champions and these are weak champions because their promotions see to it that they are picking easy opponents, look at Ryan Garcia, his Golden Boy promotions were cherry-picking fights but once he fought a capable champion, he was beaten easily.
These promoters and organizations need to see that they have to pair the best against the best.
It's good that we have Saudi promotions that are willing to spend a lot of money just to see big fights happen that other promoters don't want to promote.

Thanks for bringing this up, as lately I have been seeing a lot of great boxing fights specially in Tiktok when the great 4 kings are fighting against each other, Leonard, Hearns, Hagler and Duran. And I'm thinking this kind of great fights right now is not happening because of what we call boxing politics and then promoters protecting their boxers and wanted to be undefeated and then call them GOAT, like Floyd.

Maybe the oil rich country of Saudi can change that, with the money that they can offer this promoters, maybe they will think hard and discuss everything and have their best boxers fighting against each other as their could be offer that they can't refused from the Middle East.

And with that, maybe we can say that it's good that Saudi Arabia has entered the picture in the last couple of years and hosting fights early on and then they going bolder and bolder with that big money they have.

Governing bodies have no choice then, and who will deny if the oil money is going to roll into our direction. It used to be football with billions of sponsorship and player options. Now they turn into boxing so it's good for us in the next couple of years and maybe fights that we thought can't be made can easily be deal with their money in between.

Here is the official weight in guys,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tse3S-fmhO0

Both make the weight, however, Hearn said that


https://www.boxingscene.com/hearn-wants-more-info-about-atypical-findings-beterbievs-vada-tests-fight-with-smith-go-on--180651

So we will have to fight it out what kind of drugs have been found on Beterbiev system, also not accusing him, but at this age, your testosterone is declining and to be that strong and competitive like what Beterbiev is showing there could be some questions, just saying.

Beterbiev continues to destroy every opponent that steps into the ring with him. Age and inactivity didn't matter much because he is still a beast. Smith showed some improvement from when he fought Canelo but he is still incapable of using his size to his advantage. He could've been more successful by boxing from a distance.

With this mandatory out of the way, it is time to make the undisputed fight against Bivol. It will be an interesting clash of styles. Bivol is a much more skillful fighter whose style might frustrate Beterbiev but he lacks the power to keep Beterbiev from coming forward. Every time Beterbiev lands he does damage, he can even hurt you with a jab. For Bivol it will be difficult to avoid that freight train coming towards him for twelve rounds.

It was Beterbiev throughout the fight, and there was nothing that Smith could do to stop Beterbiev I just knew it was a matter of time, and the time came in the seventh round, Callum wanted to continue but Callum's corner, and the doctor wanted the fight ended, we all agree that the fight should be ended Callum although can still keep up Beterbiev is such a strong finisher, there's no way Callum can defend the barrage of punches.

All talks now should be about the unification of the light heavyweight between Beterbiev and Bivol, all fighters in the light heavyweight division will not have a chance against these two fighters so negotiation should start now.

Less than 10 rounds again for Arthur, another one side beating. I thought that Smith could give him trouble, but it was just another dominant win by Beterbiev and there's nothing that Smith can do. And his trainer knew that Callum is going to take more damages if they continue to fight.


Hopefully, we will see this fight. Another one of those unification and this is to be one of the biggest fight this year if we can get the two in the ring together. Both undefeated, but I think Beterbiev could be the slight favorite here. So let's see how both camp are going to negotiate, might be tough. But as fans, this needs to be done this year.

Here's the highlight of the fight

Artur Beterbiebv Crushes Callum Smith at Home | FIGHT HIGHLIGHTS (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssh3U5B89k0)

It was mauling from start to finish, Beterbiev kept his 100% knock-out ratio the road only led to a title unification against Bivol all the other fight coming for Beterbiev if its not Bivol will be a boring fight, Beterbiev is not getting younger he should chase for a legacy fight not another cherry-picked fight like this.
Not because they are both Russian and they should not fight, more that they fight each other because whoever wins will be for the glory of Russia, so let's see if they are going to materialize the fight.

Yeah, they should negotiate as soon as possible as Beterbiev is not getting younger anymore, in fact he will be turning 39 this coming January 21, we all knew that age is really a factor in boxing.

Back to the Callum Smith mauling, just wow, Beterbiev is really a heavy-handed fighter that when his punch touches his opponent, they are hurt and damaged.

Beterbiev is getting better he is going 39 but there's no decline in his power and speed Beterbiev and Bivol hurdled their respective opponent just this month, so there should be no hindrance on why they should not fight, I hate to see this becoming another Spence - Crawford with both fighters having a lot of allegation each other before they clash, I hope the Saudi promoters will see how good if these fighters will collide inside the ring and so they have to make it happen.

I thought that Beterbiev will start slow just like in the Yarde fight, but this time, he doesn't want to give his opponent a feeling that they have in the control of the fight and so he started early and did not give Callum Smith any breathing room as he just smothered him.

That jab really do the damage early and then body shots that took the toll on Smith.

It was a mismatch to be honest, I'm not sure if Smith doesn't have the power or just Beterbiev chin is really very hard to crack. It's time for Bivol fight, unification at LHW and it's going to be a great fight.

And probably that's why he could be talking HGH because at his age, it's very difficult to maintain that kind of body and then power. Anyhow, we will see what if the doping body will make public the result of the drug testing or at least what kind of substance they found on Beterbiev.


He was known to overpower his opponent, so this fight is really on Beterbiev as Smith is like 4:1 underdog and we clearly see how sports bookies put him at that odds. Beterbiev almost clean up this division already and there's only one fighter to go and face next and that is Bivol.

He fought the fight that Beterbiev wanted, he goes toe to toe with the champion and even if he hit Beterbiev with that left hook of his, it didn't put any effect on Beterbiev and he just keeps on coming and the accumulation of damages to Callum was too much.


Yep, it's time for both of them to face for the undisputed, there have been talks for this to happen already and now that Canelo doesn't want a rematch with Bivol, the only fight that make sense for him is to fight Beterbiev. Maybe the volume might keep Beterbiev from coming forward, but for sure this is a great fight. Perhaps we can compare it to Miguel Cotto vs Antonio Margarito wherein Margarito was a come forward fighter and then Cotto defending himself by picking up shots. Bivol should need to make this fight in the middle to give him more room to throw his punches.

That would be after Ramadan Beterbiev will take a break during Ramadan and he will resume talks after Ramadan, his promoter Bob Arum assures that they can get into the fight 3 months after Ramadan and possibly in Saudi Arabia, we have seen a lot of great rivalries for the undisputed title but talks are too slow, Arum was the manager of Crawford and he did not materialize a deal against Spence then.
I hope this time he will get the Beterbiev - Bivol to materialize


Artur Beterbiev wants undisputed light-heavyweight championship fight with Dmitry Bivol next: 'I need a fourth belt!' (https://www.skysports.com/boxing/news/12183/13047984/artur-beterbiev-wants-undisputed-light-heavyweight-championship-fight-with-dmitry-bivol-next-i-need-a-fourth-belt)
Beterbiev record of 20 fights, 20 wins, 20 knockouts is outstanding but even if he retires with a perfect record there will be a blemish in his record because there is one in standing in his era that could possibly beat him and yet they failed to face in the ring.

The boxing community is hoping that 2024 is the year they will finally meet in the ring and resolve once and for all who is the undisputed heavyweight and possibly greatest Light heavyweight in modern generation.

Ok so we will just have to wait for this fight, perhaps after Ramadan, they can talk and sit down and hopefully Bob Arum can find a way to make this fight happen in Saudi Arabia as this seems to be the place for big fights as I agree that with the financial backings of one of the world richest nation, everyone will obviously sit down and take about the money involved and how much this boxers can earn for their potential unification fight. So it's Beterbiev's power against Bivol's head movement and volume and ring IQ. He had beaten one of the best boxer in our generation in Canelo so for sure he is very much confident that he can defeat the power of Beterbiev. But I think if this fight goes, Beterbiev might be the slight favorite.

And this is what Beterbiev says, a potential fight with Bivol,


https://www.boxingscene.com/beterbiev-taunts-bivol-last-five-years-hes-telling-everyone-he-gonna-fight-me-next--180757

So this is already creating a lot of buzz as we can say that he is hyping this fight already or he is really interested on a unification fight. And yes he could be provoking Bivol with this statement and I think the feeling is mutual with Bivol and again as I have said in another thread, they can set aside their geo-political and boxing politics aside when big money is on the line and everyone taking a slice on that big pie that the Saudi's are offering in the boxing world.