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Tim Bradley saw some slippage in Artur Beterbiev last night, enough decline that he can’t visualize Beterbiev beating Dmitry Bivol.
The ESPN analyst answered “Bivol all day” when broadcast partner Bernardo Osuna asked him to assess the Beterbiev-Bivol fight most boxing fans want to see next. Bradley, a former junior welterweight and welterweight champion, gave Beterbiev only “a puncher’s chance” against Bivol in what would be a full title unification fight in the light heavyweight division.
Montreal’s Beterbiev (19-0, 19 KOs), the IBF/WBC/WBO champion, wants to finally battle Bivol next, but Bivol’s plan for his first fight of 2023 is less clear.
Bivol (21-0, 11 KOs), who owns the WBA belt, would welcome a lucrative rematch with Canelo Alvarez, but Alvarez (58-2-2, 39 KOs) is expected to fight someone other than Bivol in his first fight since he had surgery to repair his left wrist in October. Eddie Hearn, the promoter with whom Bivol works, wants him to box British contender Joshua Buatsi (16-0, 13 KOs).
If Beterbiev-Bivol materializes, though, Bradley believes Bivol will beat Beterbiev convincingly. Bradley broke down that battle between undefeated 175-pound champions from Russia during an episode of ESPN’s “State of Boxing,” which was streamed after Beterbiev stopped England’s Anthony Yarde in the eighth round last month at OVO Arena Wembley in London.
“Bivol’s gonna win this fight,” Bradley said. “There’s no doubt. I mean, did you see how many shots [Beterbiev] got hit with? He got hit flush with combinations. And Bivol can do that all night. And when they do fight, or if they do fight, don’t be surprised if you see Bivol step to Beterbiev, because if Yarde can step to Beterbiev, there’s no question Bivol’s gonna step to Beterbiev. And he’s gonna push him back. And he’s also gonna fight him off the back foot – no doubt about it. So, I’m telling you right now Bivol’s gonna be the undisputed champion this year. That was my big prediction for [2023], that Bivol will capture all those titles and he will dethrone that man.”
Beterbiev trailed Yarde (23-3, 22 KOs) on two scorecards entering their fateful eighth round. South Korea’s Jun Bae Lim (68-65) and New York’s Robin Taylor (67-66) had Yarde ahead through seven rounds, but France’s Jerome Lades had Beterbiev in front by one point, 67-66.
Beterbiev buzzed Yarde with a right hand just after the halfway point of the eighth round. Yarde dropped to his gloves and knees after Beterbiev hit him behind his head.
Yarde got up before referee Steve Gray counted to 10. Beterbiev then landed several more punches before Yarde’s trainer, Tunde Ajayi, instructed Gray to stop their fight at 2:01 of the eighth round.
“He got hit,” Bradley said of Beterbiev. “Did you see his face? I mean, he got hit with a lotta shots. Now imagine Bivol, how precise and accurate he is with his punches, how he maintains distance, how he has the high guard, with the defense, and quick step back. Bop, bop, bop, counter. I mean, there’s a lot to worry about with a fighter like Bivol, man. I still wanna see it. You know, I think that Beterbiev has a puncher’s chance, no doubt about it. It’s not gonna be easy. He’s gonna take a lotta leather before he lands that one shot. But Bivol all day.”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.