Who should be next for Artur Beterbiev? 3 possible opponents
Artur Beterbiev notched an astounding 20th knockout over Callum Smith last night. Is an undisputed fight with Dmitry Bivol next?
By: Blaine Henry | 2 weeks
Russian boxer Artur Beterbiev and German boxer Adam Deines fight in their bout at Megasport Arena. | Aleksander Polyakov of Russian Look, IMAGO
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Last night, Canada’s Artur Beterbiev walked down Callum Smith like a T-1000 hunting down Sarah Connor in Terminator 2. Now cries for unification are in the air for an undisputed light heavyweight champion. But it is never that simple in boxing. Let’s look at the top three options for Beterbiev in the new year.
Undisputed: Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol
Should Dmitry Bivol be next for Artur Beterbiev? | Joe Camporeale / USA TODAY Network, IMAGO
This is the logical fight. Artur Beterbiev has the WBC, WBO and IBF light heavyweight titles and Dmitry Bivol holds the IBF. A fight between the two would be the last unification fight and an undisputed champion.
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Not gonna lie, we’re a bit disappointed
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Bivol, who beat Canelo Alvarez in May of 2022, is coming off of a win over Lyndon Arthur on the Joshua-Wallin card. That fight marked a ninth straight decision victory with his last knockout coming in 2019. Bivol’s newfound stardom now calls for his status as undisputed and Beterbiev is the only way to do that.
But boxing will box and we’re likely to see Dmitry Bivol take on some lame fight instead of Beterbiev. Or worse, he will move down to 168 to fight Canelo Alvarez for his undisputed titles.
This is the obvious fight to make but Bivol has his own agenda and who knows what happens next. We need other options.
Lyndon Arthur: Beat Bivol with comparisons
Should Lyndon Arthur get the call for Artur Beterbiev?
If Dmitry Bivol will not unify the titles, Lyndon Arthur is the next best option. Anthony Joshua did this to Tyson Fury just last month by taking an opponent that Fury had trouble with, Otto Wallin, and beating him decisively. In fact, that’s exactly what he’s doing again with his new fight with Francis Ngannou.
Lyndon Arthur took Bivol the distance and had him hurt a bit at one point. If Artur Beterbiev goes out and knocks Arthur out within the distance, the pressure then goes to Bivol to show that he’s truly the better boxer and force a showdown for Bivol.
Heading Bivol off: Joshua Buatsi
Joshua Buatsi is also an option for Artur Beterbiev. | Icon Sportswire, IMAGO
Another option would be to head off Bivol with a contender. Joshua Buatsi is one of the top rated fighters and the number one contender in IBO’s light heavyweight rankings, the belt Bivol possesses.
If Beterbiev would knock off Buatsi, a 17-0 fighter, Beterbiev could, again, corner Dmitry Bivol. Buatsi is a good UK talent and has wins over Pawel Stepien, Craig Richards and Richards Bolotniks in his last three fights. It would give Artur Beterbiev another title defense and see if he can knock out a 21st opponent.
The entire goal for Artur Beterbiev going forward should be unification. If Dmitry Bivol will not take the fight, then Beterbiev could eliminate the amount of options like Buatsi or show him up with a win over Arthur.
