By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Everyone asked for it, and the organizers delivered.
After a controversial decision when Artur Beterbiev defeated Dmitry Bivol during their light heavyweight unification bout, Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, announced that the rematch will take place on February 22, 2025, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The widely-renowned boxing promoter aired the update on his official X account including the official event graphic poster with the caption: “One of the greatest cards ever on February 22 in Riyadh.”
Last October 13, 2024, Beterbiev took down Bivol via a majority decision as two of the judges favored the bout to him while the other one had it with a draw.
It was a controversial ending as the majority in attendance was stunned when Beterbiev’s name was called as the match winner.
Bivol, a well-known technical boxer who relies on his ring IQ and slick fluid movement, appeared to get the better of Beterbiev in the whole middle rounds before the latter stepped on the gas pedal from rounds 10-12.
Ringside judge Manuel Palomo scored the bout a draw, 114-all, while Glenn Feldman had it close, 115-113, in favor of Beterbiev.
Perhaps the most questionable scorecard came from Pawel Kardyni, who handed Beterbiev a sizable 116-112 victory.
Despite the major shocker, Bivol was still in grace in defeat, thanking all the organizers for the opportunity given to him and vowed that he would be back on the canvas to face Beterbiev in a possible rematch.
“Congratulations to Artur and his team, he deserves it. I did my job. I thought I could make it better. I could always make it better. He won. What could I say?” said Bivol.
Beterbiev kicked off the bout with the same strategy of hounding Bivol, applying pressure since the official time ticked and circled around the ring.
However, no clean punches were thrown for Beterbiev, while Bivol came up with several 1-2 combinations that landed solidly on his chin.
Bivol seemed to take control of the fight from round four-nine as he outboxed Beterbiev with his efficient jabs and left hooks.
In the last three rounds, Beterbiev sensed the urgency and became the ultimate aggressor in the fight, stepping on the gas pedal while showcasing his one-of-a-kind stamina.
Beterbiev did pretty well in the championship rounds as he let Bivol feel his power with several power punch flurries and also maintained his pace until the final horn of the fight.
Will Bivol successfully pull off a revenge tour or will Beterbiev end an anticipated trilogy and hold all of the light heavyweight belts for a longer time?
