The first duel of the strongest boxers of the half -legged weight category of Arthur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivola left a lot of questions. The armored personnel carrier won, but did it not too convincing. The revenge begd with, and on the night of February 23 it took place. It turned out that Bwille made the right conclusions after the defeat.

Now Russia has a new absolute world champion. However, the history of the confrontation between Bivol and Beterbiev, perhaps, does not end there.

Beterbiev’s pressure

On the night of Sunday, February 23, in Riyadh, one of the most high-profile events of the year in world boxing took place-revenge of two Russian boxers Arthur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivola. At stake stood the status of an absolute world champion in a half -legged weight category. The first duel ended in favor of the BTR by the decision of most judges. The favorite of the second battle, according to bookmakers, also listed a 40-year-old champion.

True, the difference in the coefficients was not so significant, so there was no sense in paying attention to forecasts. In the end, it was believed that before the first confrontation, Bovil had a little more chance of success, but the result is known to everyone. Concluding the conversations about preliminary layouts, it is worth saying that Arthur’s victory was considered more likely than the victory on points, and Dmitry’s early victory was perceived as something unlikely. At the same time, judging by the coefficients, it was expected that the fans, most likely, would see all 12 rounds.

At the beginning of the battle, boxers were really in no hurry to force events, as if both were in full distance of the fight. In the second round, Beterbiev added pressure, but Bivola was not too embarrassed, at the first opportunity he tried to intercept the initiative. The impression was that Dmitry was still a little better than the opponent in the early rounds, although at times Arthur’s blows were very dangerous.

Arthur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol / Photo: © Richard Pelham / Stringer / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

Bivola’s confidence

In the fourth round, Beterbiev inflated the pace, the opponent immediately had difficulties. In the next three -minute segment, Arthur continued to develop an advantage, while Dmitry tried not to risk it and, it seems, tried to recover after a number of missing heavy blows. Closer to the equator of the duel, Bwall tried to regain the initiative, but in the exchange he ran into a dangerous attack.

Dmitry outlined a hematoma on his left eye, but he continued to fight, and Beterbiev’s advantage ceased to look so obvious. Confidence returned to the eighth round to Dmitry, and the armored personnel carrier seemed to have decided to take a break to maintain strength for the ends. In the ninth, the applicant caught the courage, he succeeded almost everything. If you leave the possible judicial surprises by brackets, Arthur in such a situation remained to be relying only to knockout in the end.

Calm reigned in the corner of Bivol, but, of course, it was too early to relax. In the champion rounds, Beterbiev added again, but he could not truly catch the opponent with a ragging blow. After the end of the 12th round, the rivals, who did not experience special sympathy for each other, hugged. It remained to wait for the verdict, and this time the judges determined that Dmitry Bivol became the absolute world champion. However, there is a high probability that the history of the confrontation is not completed.