Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol’s undisputed light heavyweight title fight will take place at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Bivol’s last two fights both took place at Kingdom Arena, while Beterbiev has never fought in Saudi Arabia.
Location: Kingdom Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Dmitry Bivol vs Artur Beterbiev fight odds
Being two of the best fighters on the planet, the oddsmakers don’t see much separating Beterbiev and Bivol. Bivol is just favored to win at -125 on BetMGM, while Beterbiev is +110 to win the bout.
Beterbiev by KO/TKO: +160Beterbiev by decision: +650Bivol by KO/TKO: +550Bivol by decision: +125
Odds via BetMGM, as of Oct. 10
Dmitry Bivol vs Artur Beterbiev fight predictions
This fight is about as 50-50 as they come. It’s, in my opinion, the best fight that can currently be made in boxing due to the pedigree of each fighter along with their intriguing stylistic differences.
Bivol’s best shot at winning is to do what he does best, which is box. He’ll want to avoid letting Beterbiev inside at all costs and his best punch, the jab, will surely be working overtime. Beterbiev isn’t a one-dimensional fighter though and can certainly find success from the midrange, but ultimately Bivol will have the advantage when fighting from range.
Beterbiev will likely spend a fair share of the fight boxing from the midrange, but he’ll pose a major threat stepping inside and unloading his vicious power punches. Beterbiev will have his chances to inflict damage. How few and far between those chances come could determine the fight.
Predictions: Beterbiev def. Bivol by TKO-11; Chris Eubank def. Kamil Szeremeta by KO-6; Fabio Wardley def. Frazier Clarke by SD; Jai Opetaia def. Jack Massey by UD;
Dmitry Bivol fight record
Dmitry Bivol is 23-0 with 12 wins by knockout .
Bivol was elevated to full WBA champion in 2017 after having previously held the interim title since 2016. Bivol has defended his title 12 times, most notably against Canelo Alvarez in 2022, handing Alavrez his second career loss.
Bivol is ranked No. 2 at light heavyweight and No. 7 pound-for-pound by The Ring , while he’s ranked No. 1 at light heavyweight and No. 4 pound-for-pound by ESPN .
Dmitry Bivol age, height, weight class
Dmitry Bivol is 33 years old and stands at 6-foot with a 72-inch reach.
Bivol has fought at light heavyweight his entire career, which has a maximum weight limit of 175 pounds. Bivol weighed in at exactly 175 pounds in his last fight and typically weighs in just below the divisional limit.
Artur Beterbiev fight record
Artur Beterbiev is 20-0 with 20 wins by knockout .
Beterbiev first won the IBF light heavyweight in 2017 over Enrico Koelling and went on to unify it with the WBC title with a win over Oleksandr Gvozdyk in 2019. Beterbiev then collected the WBO belt in 2022 with a win over Joe Smith Jr. and has defended his unified titles three times.
Beterbiev is ranked No. 1 at light heavyweight and No. 6 pound-for-pound by The Ring . He’s ranked No. 2 at light heavyweight and No. 6 pound-for-pound by ESPN .
Artur Beterbiev age, height, weight class
Artur Beterbiev is 39 years old and stands at 5-foot-11 with a 73-inch reach.
Like Bivol, Beterbiev has spent his entire career at light heavyweight and has weighed in right at the division’s 175-pound limit in three of his last four fights.
Dmitry Bivol stats
Dmitry Bivol is a technical boxer with elite defense, both traits that show in his statistics.
Bivol has the third best plus/minus in boxing with +17.8, meaning he lands 17.8 more shots on his opponents, than he gets hit with. Bivol works his offense behind his jab, which he lands 8.8 times per round, more than any other fighter. He’s seventh among active boxers in jab connect percentage, landing 24.9% of his jabs.
In terms of defense, Bivol’s opponents land just six punches per round, third fewest in the sport, while his opponents land those shots at a 13% rate, the lowest opponent connect percentage in all of boxing.
Stats via Compubox
Artur Beterbiev stats
Beterbiev has a plus/minus of +10.4 and lands 19.4 punches per round at a 31.8% rate. Despite being one of the sport’s most destructive punchers, Beterbiev only lands 13 power punches per round, connecting at a 38.1% rate.
While at times Beterbiev has taken damage in fights, his opponents land just 8.7 punches per round, connecting on 21.4% of their total punches and 30.6% of power punches.
Stats via Compubox
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Harrison Campbell covers boxing for The Tennessean and high school sports for The Daily Herald. Email him at hcampbell@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @hccamp .
