Dmitry Bivol avenged his 2024 loss to Artur Beterbiev, defeating his rival by majority decision for the undisputed light heavyweight championship early Sunday morning at ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The rematch was set 133 days after Beterbiev won a narrow majority decision in October, and the second fight was every bit as good as the first. In the end, it was Bivol's activity that won over the judges with scores of 116-112, 115-113 and 114-114.
After spending 36 minutes in the ring together in the first fight, both fighters were familiar with what the other had to offer. It would be Bivol (24-1, 12 KOs) who made the first adjustment by standing flat-footed in front of Beterbiev (21-1, 20 KOs) rather than staying on his toes and moving around the ring. The slight alteration in strategy yielded early results as Bivol was sharp behind the jab and prevented Beterbiev from unloading his power shots.
But Beterbiev, 40, continued to push forward and force Bivol to fight at a hectic pace. Bivol found success putting together combinations with several punches piercing through Beterbiev's guard. Although Bivol was more active, Beterbiev's body punching began to wear on the challenger. Beterbiev placed his foot firmly on the gas in the fifth round and slammed punches into the body and head of Bivol, moving him around the ring with every punch.
Bivol, 34, would steady himself in the seventh round and put combinations behind the jab. A short-left hook in the eighth round forced Beterbiev to reset and think twice about pushing forward. With his punch output diminishing, Bivol would take advantage of his tiring opponent and pelt him with clean combination punching in the center of the ring.
With Bivol looking fresher in the championship rounds, Beterbiev needed to find something to alter the course of the fight. The skill and precision punching of Bivol halted Beterbiev's advances. Unlike the first fight, where Bivol released his grip on the fight, the Russian bit down on his mouthpiece and was busier to close the show.
In a last-ditch effort, Beterbiev stunned Bivol with a right hand late in the 12th round and opened up a cut over his left eye. But Bivol stymied Beterbiev's final salvo by clinching and avoiding further damage.
