Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol, two undisputed fights in Riyadh that ended one apiece

For four months between October 2024 and February 2025, Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol shared one ring, one city and one prize. They met twice in Riyadh with every major light heavyweight belt on the line, and both nights ended on the same three numbers: 116-112, 115-113 and 114-114. The first time those cards went to Beterbiev. The second time they went to Bivol.

Two unbeaten Russians and one empty throne

By 2024 the light heavyweight division had two champions and no clear king. Artur Beterbiev, a two-time Russian Olympian who settled in Montreal and became a Canadian citizen, held the WBC, IBF and WBO titles. He had never heard a final bell as a professional: all 20 of his wins had come by knockout or stoppage. Dmitry Bivol, from Russia, owned the WBA title and a reputation as the most precise boxer in the division. He was 23-0, with 12 knockouts, and was making the twelfth defence of his belt.

The division had not had a single undisputed champion since Roy Jones Jr. unified the WBA, WBC and IBF titles in 1999 by stopping Reggie Johnson. No light heavyweight had ever held all four of the modern belts at once.

The fight was first set for 1 June 2024, but Beterbiev ruptured the meniscus in his left knee and withdrew. Bivol fought on without him and stopped the unbeaten replacement Malik Zinad. The bout was rebooked for October as part of Riyadh Season, with Turki Alalshikh's backing reportedly paying each man a career-high purse of about $10 million.

Kingdom Arena, 12 October 2024

The two men met at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh on 12 October 2024, on a card billed as the IV Crown Showdown. Beterbiev was 39 and Bivol 33. Both made the 175-pound limit, Beterbiev with very little to spare. Referee Thomas Taylor had never worked a fight involving either of them. Along with the four sanctioning body belts, the vacant Ring Magazine title was on offer.

Bivol set the early pattern. He stayed on the outside, worked behind his jab and countered with his right hand, and Beterbiev struggled at first to deal with his hand speed. Dan Rafael, writing for Fight Freaks Unite, gave Bivol the opening four rounds.

The fifth round marked the first real shift. Beterbiev landed a hard straight left and closed the round with a body shot. In the seventh Bivol was in control until Beterbiev let his hands go and drove him to the ropes with a right hand, though Bivol answered at one point with a run of unanswered punches. By the end of the eighth, swelling had formed under Bivol's left eye. In the ninth he spent more time moving away from Beterbiev's power, and in the eleventh the referee warned him for pushing his opponent's head down.

Going into the tenth round, Beterbiev was behind on two of the three judges' cards, according to Rafael. He took the last three rounds on all of them, pressing forward and throwing combinations as Bivol tired.

A majority decision and the first four-belt champion

Judge Pawel Kardyni scored the fight 116-112 for Beterbiev, Glenn Feldman had it 115-113 for Beterbiev, and Manuel Oliver Palomo scored it a draw at 114-114. Beterbiev won by majority decision and became the first man to hold all four major light heavyweight titles at once. Rafael noted that he was only the 13th male boxer to become a four-belt undisputed champion in any division. It was also the first time an opponent had lasted the full distance with him.

The punch statistics showed how close the fight had been. According to CompuBox, Beterbiev landed 137 of 682 punches (20 per cent) and Bivol landed 142 of 423 (about 34 per cent). Each man landed 31 body shots. Beterbiev led in power punches, 90 to 64, and in eight of the 12 rounds the gap in landed punches was four or fewer.

Beterbiev was unusually self-critical afterwards and said he had not boxed well. He also said, "But today, Allah chose me." Bivol congratulated him and accepted the verdict as the judges' opinion. His promoter, Eddie Hearn, was much angrier and called the decision a joke. A week later, Bivol's team lodged a protest with all four sanctioning bodies. According to Wikipedia, the aim was a quick rematch, not a reversal. Alalshikh said he had scored the fight for Bivol and wanted to see them meet again.

The road back to Riyadh

The new champion's belts brought new obligations straight away. On 17 October the IBF ordered Beterbiev to defend against its mandatory challenger, Michael Eifert. Bob Arum criticised the order and said being undisputed felt like a burden. On 2 December 2024 the rematch was made official as the closing event of Riyadh Season, and the IBF granted an exemption. Beterbiev said his goal was to keep all his titles and passed on a possible fight with Canelo Álvarez. WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman made it clear that David Benavidez was next in line for the winner.

The Last Crescendo, 22 February 2025

The rematch, billed as The Last Crescendo, took place in Riyadh on 22 February 2025 in front of about 7,000 fans. Sources give the venue different names. The Ring and Dan Rafael call it ANB Arena, Wikipedia's article on the rematch calls it The Venue, and an Al Jazeera report names Kingdom Arena in its text and anb Arena in a Reuters photo caption.

This time Bivol looked looser and more patient. He used his jab, moved more and put together quicker combinations. Accounts of the first half differ. Al Jazeera wrote that Bivol took the first three rounds before Beterbiev found his rhythm in the fourth, while Rafael felt Beterbiev started much the better and that Bivol had to come from behind. All of the sources agree that Bivol was mostly in command in the second half. After the seventh round Beterbiev's pace dropped, and Bivol circled and landed clean combinations. Beterbiev had the better of the tenth until Bivol finished it strongly.

Before the twelfth, Beterbiev's corner told him he needed the round. He walked forward and opened a cut over Bivol's left eyebrow, and Bivol finished the fight bleeding. Beterbiev had also been cut above the eye earlier in the bout.

Same numbers, different winner

The cards read 116-112 and 115-113 for Bivol and 114-114 even, exactly the same as in October but now in Bivol's favour. The judge who scored it level, Jean-Robert Laine of Monaco, drew criticism from Bivol's manager, Vadim Kornilov. He asked, "Why isn't there any sanctioning body supervision that can look into how they saw it 114-114?"

CompuBox had Bivol landing 170 of 574 punches (31.1 per cent) and Beterbiev 121 of 688 (17.6 per cent). Bivol outlanded him in nine of the 12 rounds.

The win made Bivol undisputed champion and handed Beterbiev the first defeat of his professional career. Bivol was the first man to take the title from a reigning undisputed champion since Carlos Baldomir beat Zab Judah in 2006. "I'm just so happy," Bivol said, adding that he had been through a lot in the previous year. Beterbiev did not want to discuss the scoring. He said he felt this fight had been better than the first, that he had never wanted a rematch, and that a third fight should follow. Hearn called it the best fight he had seen live, and the former HBO commentator Jim Lampley compared its intensity to Gatti-Ward and Barrera-Morales.

A trilogy still waiting

A third fight looked certain, but it has been slow to come together. In April 2025 Bivol vacated the WBC title instead of facing Benavidez, which reports at the time linked to his plans for a third bout with Beterbiev. In August 2025 he announced back surgery that ruled him out until the first quarter of 2026. Beterbiev complained publicly about the shifting timetable. In December 2025 he told reporters, as reported by The Ring, that Bivol had turned down an offer to hold the third fight in Russia, and said he was also open to facing Benavidez. Across the two fights the record stands at one win each, and every one of the six scorecards had them within four points of each other.

Sources

• Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol, Wikipedia, accessed 13 November 2026
• Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol II, Wikipedia, accessed 13 November 2026
• Beterbiev edges Bivol to be crowned undisputed 175 champion, Dan Rafael / Fight Freaks Unite, 13 October 2024
• Beterbiev defeats Bivol for undisputed boxing world champion crown, Al Jazeera, 13 October 2024
• Bivol avenges loss to Beterbiev, claims undisputed title, Dan Rafael / Fight Freaks Unite, 23 February 2025
• Bivol takes Beterbiev's undisputed light-heavyweight world title, Al Jazeera, 23 February 2025
• Bivol's manager not pleased with 114-114 score in Beterbiev rematch, The Ring, 23 February 2025
• Dmitry Bivol vacates WBC light heavyweight world title to all but confirm Artur Beterbiev trilogy, Boxing News, 8 April 2025
• Beterbiev turns up the heat on Bivol over delayed trilogy, Boxing News, 6 July 2025
• Beterbiev says Bivol rejected trilogy offer, open to fighting Benavidez, The Ring, 12 December 2025