A second eyebrow-raising story of Artur Beterbiev smashing a heavyweight is uncovered ahead of a fight with Dmitry Bivol this summer.
Beterbiev trades leather with Bivol for the undisputed light heavyweight title. Saudi Chairman Turki Alalshikh offered a date of June 1.
Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol
“Boxing fans have been dreaming of a fight between light heavyweight champions Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol for years. The dream fight is now a reality. The bout is set for June 1 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia,” Turki Alalshikh told The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani.
TNT Sports later added that a promoter vs promoter tournament of five bouts featuring fighters from Eddie Hearn and Frank Warren’s stables would happen the same night.
“His Excellency Turki Alalshikh targeting Dmitry Bivol vs. Artur Beterbiev for the undisputed light heavyweight titles and Queensberry vs. Matchroom, five vs. five, all on June 1,” they said.
Heavyweight smashing
The confirmation comes after World Boxing News published a story about heavyweight Frazer Clarke’s admission that Beterbiev ‘smashed all his chins’ in sparring.
Clarke, who faces Fabio Wardley for the British title on March 31, had stated: “I got chucked in these small rings in Sheffield in 2011. There was a camp with Russia with this little mean-looking thing. He was young and thought, ‘He’s tiny. I’ll be too big for him.’ – His name was Artur Beterbeiv. He smashed every one of my chins and every roll on my body.”
In response to Clarke, it’s since been claimed that David Price was a second victim of the light heavyweight’s considerable force.
“I remember Anthony Ogogo talking about this on Ringside [Sky Sports] years ago. He said Beterbiev punched David Price all over the shop, and he’d never seen anything like it.”
The fact that Beterbiev has been dominating top-division punchers in training for some time doesn’t come as any surprise. His one hundred percent knockout ratio speaks for itself.
Most recently, former unified super middleweight champion Callum Smith was the victim. Smith had never been stopped before.
Bivol, on paper, is undoubtedly Beterbiev’s most formidable challenge to date. The Russian defeated Canelo Alvarez in a superb performance good enough to stop the Mexican wanting anything to do with a rematch.
However, the Las Vegas victory wasn’t the springboard Bivol hoped for. His career stagnated since, as many avoided Bivol. The battle with Beterbiev will see both men earn career-high paydays in Riyadh.
Phil Jay is an experienced boxing news writer and has been the Editor of World Boxing News since 2010.
