Benavidez predicts Bivol will defeat Beterbiev in rematch

David Benavidez insists former WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol deserved to win his fight against IBF, WBC and WBO champion Artur Beterbiev on October 12 last year in Riyadh.

Bivol’s superiority

WBC ‘interim’ 175-pound champion Benavidez says Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs) threw the best combinations and controlled most of the fight. He feels that if Bivol, 34, fights the same way as last time, he will defeat undisputed champion Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) in their rematch on February 22 in Riyadh. Their fight will be broadcast live on DAZN PPV.

Some believe that the reason Benavidez chooses Bivol to win the rematch is his desire for him to emerge victorious because he might lack the confidence to defeat Beterbiev, who is a big puncher. ‘Mexican Monster’ Benavidez’s fighting style involves him putting every ounce of energy into every punch he throws to get maximum power from his shots.

David is not a big hitter, so he takes advantage of everything he throws to improve his power. That style won’t work against Beterbiev because he throws short punches with great power and, unlike Benavidez, doesn’t have to finish to generate his power.

If Benavidez fights Artur, it will be a miserable night. He couldn’t charge his shots because they would touch him. Additionally, David’s rapid combination punches would leave him open to being countered by Beterbiev and knocked out.

Although Benavidez takes good shots due to his thick skull, which has a slight appearance of acromegaly, his ability to take body shots is not as good. You may be injured there. In the twelfth round, Oleksandr Gvozdyk landed a hard right to Benavidez’s abdomen, stopping his offense completely for the rest of the round.

He didn’t throw a single punch after Gvozdyk hurt him to the body in the final round. Beterbiev is a better body puncher than Gvozdyk, and he will have seen that weakness and will focus on that area rather than wasting blows on Benavidez’s thick skull.

Revenge prediction

“I thought Bivol won that fight. It was a close fight. “It couldn’t have been any way,” David Benavidez told mediatalking about the fight between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol on October 12 of last year in Riyadh.

“I feel like Bivol won most of the rounds. He was controlling most of the rounds and his punch combination was better,” Benavidez continued. “I think he (Bivol) will (win the rematch on February 22).

“Both fighters are high-caliber fighters. So they can make adjustments. “I don’t know if it will be the same fight or not, but if it is the same fight, I feel like Bivol wins.”