Via Craig Daly: Eddie Hearn says WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol could fight for the undisputed 175 lb championship later this year against Artur Beterbiev vs. Joe Smith Jr., the winner of their match on June 18.
Bivol will claim a 12-round unanimously mammoth win over Canelo on May 7, and it’s no surprise that Hearn wants to commit that the planned rematch goes smoothly in May. 2023.
Hearn says that the undisputed fight is just one possibility for Bivol (20-0, 11 KOs) to make this year.
It will be a risky fight for Bivol against 175lb IBF/WBC champion Artur Beterbiev (17-0, 17 KOs) or WBO champion Joe Smith Jr. (March 28, 22 KOs).
Bivol will first defend his WBA light heavyweight title, and then the undisputed fight option against winner Beterbiev-Smith will be an option for him.
Find out the options for Bivol’s next fight:
1. Joshua Buatsi
2. Callum Smith
Buatsi is undefeated but was not in good form in a recent win over Craig Richards last week. Callum Smith is better known than Buatsi, but he looked lousy in the decisive 12-round loss to Canelo Alvarez in 2020.
“He’s going to be fighting around the time that Joe Smith and Beterbiev fight in June, so Dmitry Bivol might even consider the undisputed fight at the end of the year with us,” Eddie Hearn said. DAZN Boxing Show on the possibility of 175-lb WBA champion Bivol fighting for the undisputed light heavyweight championship with winner Beterbiev vs. Smith Jr.
Unless Hearn can talk to promoter Beterbiev & Smith Bob Arum changed his mind about his not being interested in letting either of those fighters face Bivol, an undisputed fight that will NOT happen in 2022.
“Obviously, Joshua Buatsi just won over the weekend. It’s a fight we really want to do [against Bivol] also. You have Callum Smith, another warrior we represent.
“We have a lot of options for him [Bivol] as long as the defense is voluntary. He wants to be undisputed, but at the same time, he wants the rematch [with Canelo Alvarez] because that rematch will make him a lot of money.
“It was one of the biggest battles [Canelo vs. Bivol II]so we’ll sit down with World Of Boxing and Vadim [Kornilov] and future planning by Dmitry Bivol. He’s in a great position,” Hearn said.
“I’m so excited about GGG [vs. Canelo trilogy] AK said. “I agree with you. I think this makes it even more interesting, Canelo’s loss to Bivol. I guess Canelo is still the favorite against GGG, but maybe not so much if he’s beaten. Bivol,” said AK.
