Beterbiev “Locked In” For Bivol Rematch

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Artur Beterbiev posted on X today that he’s “Locked in” for his rematch with Dmitry Bivol on February 22nd. They have “2 weeks to go” for their second fight at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Beterbiev’s Mindset

The undisputed light heavyweight champion Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) has a determined look that suggests he will be attacking Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs) relentlessly throughout the fight to force him into exchanges.

Beterbiev’s former cutman, Russ Anber, believes he has more room to improve than Bivol does. He feels that the former WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry, 34, fought as nearly well as he could in that fight. Artur was coming off recent knee surgery when he fought Bivol last October, and he wasn’t 100%.

It will require a lot from Bivol to raise his game from what he did last time. Unfortunately for fans, it’s believed that Bivol may employ a lot of holding to prevent Beterbiev from landing his shots when he gets near. That’s the most manageable area for Bivol to improve. This event is on DAZN PPV, and fans are expecting a lot from these two. As such, it would be disappointing if Dmitry chooses to hold constantly to neutralize Beterbiev’s attacks. However, that maybe his only option.

Bivol was vulnerable when mixing it up with Beterbiev from the sixth round in their previous fight on October 12th last year. That’s where he was hurt by a right hand from Beterbiev. That led to IBF, WBC, and WBO 175-lb champion Beterbiev sweeping most of the rounds in the second half of the contest.

Can Bivol Improve?

“I’m not sure how much he can improve on his performance. I think he boxed an excellent fight. I’m not sure what alternatives he can come up with,” said cutman Russ Anber to Secondsout when asked if Dmitry Bivol can improve on his previous performance against Artur Beterbiev.

“I do believe Beterbiev can improve on his last performance. I don’t believe we saw Beterbiev at his best. He’d had surgery on his knee and coming back. He wasn’t as forceful as he usually is. He seemed a lot more conservative.

“I personally gave him the edge. I thought he closed out the last three rounds quite solid,” Anber said about Beterbiev. “I thought he showed he can hurt Bivol. I think he can improve on his performance.

Beterbiev was coming off knee surgery to repair a blown meniscus that had occurred earlier in 2024. You could tell from watching Artur’s movement inside the ring that he wasn’t as quick to pursue Bivol as he normally is in his fights.

This allowed Dmitry to land quick 1-2 combinations and then retreat. Bivol would hold his left hand out far in front of him to keep Beterbiev from closing the distance, which was effective throughout the fight.

“Bivol is going to have to come up with something. He’s going to have to pull something out of the hat to come up with a better performance and overtake what Beterbiev brings to the table. He fought a great fight, and I think Beterbiev did not,” said Anber.

Bivol will have to stay in the pocket more to have a better shot at winning the fight. The judges clearly noted how he was giving ground to Beterbiev in the second half of the contest. It appeared that Dmitry was just trying to survive.

“I think Beterbiev can improve even more. So, Bivol is going to have to improve with the championship rounds. The last three rounds cost him. But Beterbiev may not be that far behind in the championship rounds to improve more on what he did in the first fight. I think he can be a little bit more imposing,” said Anber.

Last Updated on 02/08/2025




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