Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol will fight on June 1 for the title of best light heavyweight

Perhaps the most important fight in the entire history of Russian professional boxing has become a reality. In it, on June 1 in Riyadh, two outstanding fighters who hold light heavyweight titles (up to 79.4 kg) will meet. Artur Beterbiev owns the belts of the International Boxing Federation (IBF), the World Boxing Council (WBC) and the World Boxing Organization (WBO), Dmitry Bivol – the belt of the World Boxing Association (WBA). The level of interest in their match for champion status is absolutely fueled by the fact that we are talking about a clash of boxers who are completely different in style – the phenomenal knockout artist Beterbiev will be opposed by the subtle tactician Bivol.

The list of major sports news includes the official presentation of the boxing show, which took place in London, which will take place on June 1 in the capital of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh. This country has been constantly hosting major boxing tournaments in recent years. And the June one, in terms of sonority and scale, stands out from most of the rest.

A number of famous fighters will take part in it, and for the sake of organizing it, several leading promotion companies, otherwise fiercely competing with each other, have united in an alliance, becoming partners of the Saudi government, – Top Rank, Queensberry Promotions, Matchroom Boxing, World of Boxing Promotions and Sela. And the central event of the show will be a fight that can be considered the most important in the history of domestic professional boxing, although she knew many important fights. But this one has virtually unprecedented status.

Since the 1990s, the only Russian boxer who managed to achieve the rank of absolute world champion, collecting all the significant belts, has been the legendary welterweight (up to 63.5 kg) Konstantin Tszyu. The second one will definitely appear on June 1st.

The fact is that two Russian boxers will fight for the same rank in the light heavyweight division – holder of the titles of the International Boxing Federation, the World Boxing Council and the World Boxing Organization Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol, who holds the title of the World Boxing Association.

In this case, it is not so much the formal regalia of the rivals that is important, but their reputation. And she’s so tall that ESPN, announcing the fight, the logic and necessity of which he noted a couple of years ago, suggested that it could involve not just the title of absolute world champion in a particular weight, but first place in the ranking of the best fighters in the world, regardless of weight category. Understanding and accepting a bold thesis is not that difficult. In all reputable classifications of this kind, Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol are in the top ten. Each of them gives fifth place: ESPN – Bivol, The Ring and BoxRec – Beterbiev. Success in a head-to-head confrontation will certainly propel the winner somewhere close to the top, if not actually to the top.

Both have impeccable records, consisting entirely of won fights. Artur Beterbiev has exactly 20 of them, Dmitry Bivol has 22.

Both of them have fights against opponents with excellent reputations – such as Alexander Gvozdyk or Callum Smith for Beterbiev and Saul Alvarez for Bivol. Both of their careers are already marked with something special. Dmitry Bivol, having convincingly defeated Alvarez, who was considered invulnerable, was unanimously chosen by the expert community as the strongest boxer of 2022. The phenomenon of Arthur Beterbiev is generally easily and comprehensively explained by dry numbers. All of his victories were early, although he often had to fight with the strongest opponents.

The value of their fight, already colossal, is added by the fact that it brought together boxers completely different in terms of style, philosophy, and who are standards in their niches, or something. Dmitry Bivol is a subtle tactician, a “player” with amazing technique, Artur Beterbiev is a knockout artist with either a divine or diabolical punching gift. Such an intriguing combination of abilities is also a unique “trick” of the June fight, the potential excitement around which Talksport, for example, illustrated with a selection of statements from fans dedicated to him. Some had no doubt that it was destined to become the “fight of the year”, some assumed that this was, in principle, the most gorgeous fight of all time, at least in the light heavyweight division, some called it “the return of the real boxing.”

In the meantime, Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol, representing him in London, exchanged point-blank glances, as is customary on the eve of “big” matches, and words. Artur Beterbiev said that he already sees “another belt” in his sights. Dmitry Bivol – that even when he signed his first professional contract, he knew that he had no other goal than the absolute championship. And everything that happened on the way to it, including even a thunderous win over Saul Alvarez, were intermediate points.

Alexey Dospehov