In 2024, Dmitry Bivol (24-1) suffered the first loss of his career in his undisputed light heavyweight (175 pounds) title fight against Artur Beterbiev, losing via majority decision. It was a closely contested fight that could have gone either way, but Beterbiev edged out the victory, with one judge scoring the fight a 114-114 draw while the other two judges had it 115-113 and 116-112 in favor of Beterbiev.

Bivol was the aggressor early, utilizing his footwork and jab to control the pace, but Beterbiev began finding success in the middle rounds, engaging in more effective exchanges. Heading into the final three rounds, Bivol was ahead on two of the three judges’ scorecards, but Beterbiev capitalized on a fading Bivol, sweeping the last three rounds on all scorecards to secure the majority decision. Despite Bivol landing more total punches (142 to 137) with a higher accuracy rate (34% to Beterbiev’s 20%), it wasn’t enough to sway the judges, setting the stage for an inevitable rematch.

Four months later, Bivol avenged his loss, defeating Beterbiev by majority decision to become the undisputed light heavyweight champion at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Two judges scored the fight in favor of Bivol, 116-112 and 115-113, while the third judge had it even at 114-114.

Bivol started strong, consistently working his jab to the head and body while mixing in combinations and effectively avoiding Beterbiev’s forward pressure. Beterbiev found his rhythm in the third round, forcing Bivol onto his back foot with consistent pressure and power shots. However, Bivol regained control in the seventh round, becoming more assertive in exchanges and landing clean, effective combinations. In the final round, Beterbiev emptied the tank to turn the fight around, opening a cut under Bivol’s right eye, but it was too late. Bivol was the more effective fighter in this fight, with the statistics favoring him as he landed more punches than Beterbiev (170 to 121) and connected on 31% of his punches compared to Beterbiev’s 18%.

With the win, Bivol becomes the second undisputed light heavyweight champion in boxing’s four-belt era, claiming the WBO, WBC, IBF, and WBA titles and handing Beterbiev (20-1) his first career loss. With the series now tied at one win apiece, a highly anticipated rubber match between the two seems inevitable.

BRILLIANT BIVOL IS UNDISPUTED AT 175LBS! 🤩#BeterbievBivol2 | #RiyadhSeason | @Turki_alalshikh pic.twitter.com/TLJdyZ9RGY

— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) February 22, 2025

Beterbiev vs Bivol 2 Fight Card Results

• Dmitry Bivol def. Artur Beterbiev (c) via majority decision (114-114, 116-112, 115-113)
• Joseph Parker def. Martin Bakole via second-round TKO
• Shakur Stevenson (c) def. Josh Padley via ninth-round TKO
• Carlos Adames (c) vs. Hamzah Sheeraz ends in a split draw (114-115, 118-110, 114-114)
• Vergil Ortiz Jr. (c) def. Israil Madrimov via unanimous decision (117-11, 115-113, 115-113)
• Agit Kabayel def. Zhilei Zhang via sixth-round TKO
• Callum Smith def. Joshua Buatsi via unanimous decision (119-110, 115-113, 116-112)