A member from the inner circle of light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev rejects the idea that his charge is somehow more powerful than he has ever been in the wake of his recent demolition job on Callum Smith.
John Scully, a longtime assistant coach to the IBF, WBC, WBO champion from Russia, insists the power-punching mauler is simply doing what he has long shown throughout his professional career: beating his opponents into submission. The undefeated Beterbiev, a Canadian citizen living in Montreal, has defeated all 20 of his opponents inside the distance.
Scully was responding to spurious claims made by former cruiserweight titlist Tony Bellew, who suggested on social media that Beterbiev, 39, is defying Father Time possibly via illicit means. A baffled Bellew said a fighter at Beterbiev’s age should not be getting better as a fighter.
Concerns about doping came up a week before the Beterbiev vs. Smith fight when it was revealed that a drug test in mid-December showed “atypical” levels of HGH and testosterone in Beterbiev’s body. Smith’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, raised doubts about the results. An atypical finding is not an adverse one, however, and the matter was cleared up with further testing. The tests were performed by the Voluntary Anti-Doping Agency.
“Nonsense,” Scully told Boxing King Media. “He’s not getting more destructive. He’s the same destructive he’s always been. This is nothing new. This is not a new thing. I think sometimes, no offense to him, but sometimes when people see other people doing things that they couldn’t do, they figure there must be a reason for it other than the guy is that good, the guy is that strong and he’s that focused.
“If I can’t do something, I can’t slander someone who can, just to make them look bad and make me feel a little better about myself. Tony couldn’t do those things, he couldn’t maintain that. Doesn’t mean other people can’t.”
Scully compared Beterbiev’s age-defying condition to another gifted predecessor, Bernard Hopkins, who fought into his early 50s at a relatively high level.
“Bernard Hopkins went to almost 50 years old, 10 years older than Artur is now, and Bernard Hopkins was just as good as he ever was,” Scully said. “What do you say about that? Bernard Hopkins and Artur are extremely similar. Maybe they should lead by example. Artur and Bernard are very similar in their mentality and the way they train, the way they focus, the level of dedication that goes beyond literally 99% of fighters around the world do.
“Instead of accusing someone of something, maybe they should say, hey, maybe we should follow the example of Artur and Bernard Hopkins and be able to fight later on.”
Beterbiev’s seventh round stoppage of Smith at Centre Videotron in Quebec City has paved the way for him to take on WBA titlist Dmitry Bivol later this year in a long-awaited undisputed light heavyweight championship. There is an expectation that the two will fight in Saudi Arabia in the summer.
Sean Nam is the author of Murder on Federal Street: Tyrone Everett, the Black Mafia, and the Last Golden Age of Philadelphia Boxing.