Saturday’s rematch between undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol has thus far failed to generate that spark to get fans as excited compared to their first fight last October in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The fight isn’t getting the same buzz.
There’s a lack of drama missing between Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) and the former WBA 175-lb champion Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs) in the build-up to their rematch this Saturday, February 22nd at the Kingdom Arena.
Missing Spark
– Bivol’s non-crowd-pleasing performance in the first fight
– No controversy
– Lack of trash-talking
– Too many compelling fights on the undercard
The previous fight was rather dull because Bivol wouldn’t stand and fight and was on the run from the seventh round on. Beterbiev was chasing Dmitry around the ring and was held constantly whenever he got close. It was a boring fight to watch, but not because of Beterbiev.
Bivol’s Style
It would have been better if Turki Alalshikh had nixed the idea of a Beterbiev-Bivol rematch and instead matched Beterbiev against David Benavidez or David Morrell. Either of those guys would generate a lot more excitement from fans than using Bivol again, who fights a lot like Shakur Stevenson. That’s not a style that fans want to see.
Many boxing fans don’t enjoy watching fighters who refuse to engage and hold a lot. That’s how Bivol fought for the last seven rounds. In interviews for the rematch, Bivol says he wants to move more. Listening to that makes it impossible to get excited about a second fight. Some people like watching defensive fighters, but not enough, unfortunately.
“Even when we were on the national team, we didn’t talk too much. We were in different weight classes, but we were not like friends or something,” said Dmitry Bivol to Boxing King Media about whether he could be friends with Artur Beterbiev after they fight on Saturday night. “We had a different group of friends. I respected him because he was #1 on the National team.
“I was looking at how he was training because he was older and he was #1,” said Bivol.
Last Updated on 02/19/2025
