Bivol vs. Beterbiev II: Fear or fight?

Dmitry Bivol is working on his strength to improve and increase his power for his rematch with undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev on February 22 in Riyadh.

Two months ago, Beterbiev defeated Bivol by 12-round majority decision, but is getting a second chance due to complaints from Dmitry’s fans and promoters. There was no real controversy. In short, Bivol’s nerves failed him and he did not want to fight Beterbiev.

Beterbiev had dominated and deserved the 8-4 victory. I watched the fight and it was 9-3 for Beterbiev.

The scores

115-113: Beterbiev
114-114
116-112: Beterbiev

Second round

Dmitri looked like a scared rabbit in the previous fight and was not willing to fight the similar to a wolf Beterbiev when he was pressured in the sixth round. It’s hard to imagine the rematch being any different than the first fight because Bivol lacks the jaw, the power and, most importantly, the courage to stand up and fight Beterbiev.

Dmitry talks about wanting to be more aggressive for the second fight, but when he gets into the ring with Beterbiev and artillery starts raining down on his position, Bivol’s fear will surface again. He will then run around the ring like last time, which will make it boring for the fans to watch. He doesn’t have the heart to fight.

Former WBA 175-pound champion Bivol (23-1, 14 KOs) was poor on his power game in his 12-round majority decision loss to Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) two months ago, on October 12. He has to get stronger in this area if he wants to have a chance at winning the rematch.

Turki Al-Shiekh has given Bivol a chance to avenge his defeat, but if he is defeated this time, his chances will be gone. Their promoters and loyal followers. squawked at the loss last October, believing he had done enough to win, but that wasn’t the case.

Ideally, another opponent should have been allowed to challenge Beterbiev rather than back down with an unnecessary rematch. The boxing world would have preferred David Benavidez, Joshua Buatsi or David Morrell to face Beterbiev rather than give the defensive-minded Bivol another chance.

Bivol Settings

The Beterbiev-Bivol fight was boring due to the defensive style Bivol brought to the fight, which involved him using the Shakur-style three-foot backstep, movement, and grappling. Beterbiev did the entire fight attacking and chasing the rabbit-like Bivol around the ring.

Bivol, 34, fled when Beterbiev began to pressure him in the second half of the match. He showed that he wanted nothing to do with the undefeated unified champion.

What Bivol must do to win the rematch

– Stay in your pocket: don’t run
– Be brave
– Jab more
– Attack the body
– Limit movement

Bivol is not young at 34 years old and cannot move for 12 rounds in a row to avoid Beterbiev’s attacks. We saw that the last time they fought, and it cost him when he exhausted himself due to his decision to run when pressured by Artur.

Bivol leveling up for the rematch 📈#BetterbievBivol2 | #RiyadhSeason | February 22, live on DAZN | @Turki_alalshikh

📸 @bivol_d pic.twitter.com/yjXFzgaHB7

– DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) December 31, 2024