Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol: Odds, Records, Prediction

There has not been an undisputed light heavyweight world champion since Roy Jones held the three recognized belts at the end of the last century. Unless there is a draw on Saturday, either Artur Beterbiev or Dmitry Bivol will hold all four titles after the two meet in Saudi Arabia. And it could be the best fight of the year. Here’s everything you need to know about Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol, including the odds, their record and a prediction of who will win.

Beterbiev and Bivol have been trying to make this fight for more than a year. But Beterbiev has struggled with multiple injuries, delaying his chance to become a true 175-pound king. Now the 39-year-old Beterbiev, who is due to undergo knee surgery earlier this year, is apparently healthy (or at least as healthy as he will be), and Bivol is coming off a string of impressive victories (including a dominant win). against pound-for-pound fighter Canelo Alvarez).

This could be the best fight of the year. Even though Beterbiev isn’t at his physical peak yet, the fact that these two are fighting for the undisputed light heavyweight champion has him ready to perform.

“In professional boxing it is of utmost importance when you have four belts and that’s all,” said Beterbiev, who already owns three of the 175-pound belts. “I want to win a fourth. We prepared for this fight to be ready for anything.”

Bivol said that too. Bivol said that during training he visualized in his head every scenario that could happen in combat. He said this type of visualization keeps him calm because he is ready for anything. Although observers may believe that Beterbiev’s best chance is to win by knockout and Bivol’s best chance is to outsmart his opponent, Beterbiev is also a skilled boxer and Bivol has solid power.

Bivol could win by stoppage, and Beterbiev could win by decision. Or it could be the other way around. In any case, Bivol wants to ensure that he performs as perfectly as possible.

“I wanted the undisputed fight first and I wanted to fight the best boxers in the light heavyweight division,” Bivol said. “That’s my goal, to make a name for myself in this sport. He has these belts.

“When I came into professional boxing, this was my goal: to be the best in the light heavyweight division, and this is the last fight in which I have to prove myself. What does it mean for me? I’ve been boxing since I was 6 years old. I worked hard throughout my journey. I have sacrificed so much in my life. This is the final step. Did I do everything right or not? I want to make sure I did everything right.”

Here’s more on the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol showdown, which US viewers can watch starting at 6:00 p.m. ET on Saturday on ESPN+ (the rest of the undercard can be streamed on DAZN).

Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol odds

Boxing observers are almost 50-50 on who will win this fight, and the betting odds say the same: Bivol is the -138 betting favorite (Bet $138 to win $100) and Beterbiev is the +110- Underdog (victory). $110 on a $100 bet). The odds of Beterbiev winning by stoppage are +175 (and of him winning by decision are +700), while Bivol’s odds of winning by decision are +120 (his win by stoppage is + 600).

If you’re looking for an entertaining parlay for this weekend’s boxing action (and this is purely for entertainment purposes), I might take Bivol to beat Beterbiev at -138, Jai Opetaia to stop Jack Massey at -400 , and Skye Nicolson to beat Raven Chapman by decision at -400. If all points apply, a $100 bet would give you a profit of $170.

Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol records

It’s hard to beat Beterbiev’s record of 20-0 with 20 KOs. The longest opponent to ever last was Enrico Koelling, who made it to 12^Th round, but didn’t see the final bell in 2017. In Beterbiev’s most famous victories, he stopped Oleksandr Gvozdyk in the 10th^ThJoe Smith Jr. in the second, Anthony Yarde in the eighth and Callum Smith in the seventh. Bivol was not knocked down in a professional fight.

While Beterbiev certainly has a few solid wins, Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) has an even better record. His biggest win came against Canelo Alvarez in 2022, and later that year he overtook Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez through boxing and power. He also has impressive wins over Smith and Sullivan Barrera.

Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol prediction

Bivol was a bit more active and faced stiffer competition than Beterbiev. Yes, Beterbiev has pulverizing power, but Bivol has shown he can stay away from hard punches and win 12-round decisions (and I wouldn’t even be shocked if Bivol wobbled Beterbiev). He will do that on Saturday. Say Bivol by decision, somewhere in the 116-112 range.