On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol”

Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion

Last night, we witnessed the crowning of the first Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion in the four-belt era when our own Russian/Canadian representative Undefeated IBF/WBC/WBO Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev (21-0, 20 Kos) defeated highly skilled and Undefeated Super WBA/IBO Light Heavyweight Champion Dmitry Bivol (23-1, 12 Kos) at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

This bout to me definitely lived up to the “HYPE” surrounding it. It was a long time coming but this high-level chess match unfolded in a competitive way that showed us just how great and exceptional these two warriors are inside that squared circle.

Bivol came out the gate with a busy jab and clever foot movement keeping Beterbiev at bay but not discouraged as Beterbiev maintained his own pressure with a very calculated jab.

Surprisingly Bivol sat down on his punches and exchanged toe-to-toe with the heavy-handed Beterbiev which made this bout that much more interesting but Beterbiev made his presence known despite Bivol’s “game plan”. Although Bivol was dishing out combinations after combinations, Beterbiev’s single shots resonated with thunderous power every time they landed.

Both combatants had their moments as the rounds progressed but it was very clear and visible that the pressure that Beterbiev was coming in with had some serious effect on the light footed Bivol.

Heavy leather was being thrown from both combatants but the stress of the pace of the bout seemed more taxing on Bivol who had to keep constant movement to offset Beterbiev who was building up steam round by round.

The more Bivol stood his ground the more punishment Beterbiev administered. Both combatants showed no fear as the rounds progressed but fatigue looked to be weighing on Bivol as his high punch output diminished in the later rounds. That being said Bivol and Beterbiev did continue to bring the “HEAT” in the championship rounds.

After 12 rounds of competitive action the Judges at hand scored it 116-112, 115-113 and 114-114 in favor of Artur Beterbiev.

This was a highly contested bout from start to finish where both combatants brought their “A” game but when all was said and done there could only be one true winner and that is “King Artur” the first and new Undisputed IBO/IBF/WBA/WBC/WBO/Ring Magazine Light Heavyweight Champion of the World.

Well done, Champ. You’ve collected all the hardware piece by piece from every champion out there to now being “The Last Man Standing” in the Light Heavyweight Division.

Congratulations, Artur on an achievement well deserved.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol”

Undisputed Light Heavyweight Supremacy

The most intriguing matchup in the Light Heavyweight Division has officially been announced thanks to his Excellency Turki Alashikh, Chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, who took it upon himself to bankroll one of the most anticipated fights in Boxing to be made today.

Undefeated IBF/WBC/WBO Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20 Kos) is out there belt chasing looking at Undisputed in the 175-Pound Division but standing in his way with the same objective is the undefeated Super WBA Light Heavyweight Champion Dmitry Bivol (21-0, 11 Kos).

Both undefeated combatants want and need each other’s hardware to lay claim as the sole Undisputed Champion in the Light Heavyweight Division and on June 1st 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this high-level chess match will be on full display for the Boxing World to see.

Our own Russian/Canadian representative Beterbiev is a man of few words but one who does 100% of his talking inside that squared circle. His unblemished record and 100% knockout ratio speak volumes but it’s his boxing IQ that most opponents underestimate whenever they go up against him inside that squared circle. The man is a “Beast” who’s broken down every opponent when all is said and done.

That said, Bivol has proven numerous times to have the skillset needed to disarm heavy punchers from ever using their strongest assets inside that squared circle. The man is a genius that knows how to follow a good “game plan” and on fight night he will attempt to box his way to the crown.

Styles makes fights and these two highly skilled warriors have individually dominated the 175-Pound Division for quite some time now. That being said, there can only be one true ruler of this Division and the time has finally arrived, on June 1st 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and these two combatants will be putting it all on the line for a chance at Undisputed Light Heavyweight Supremacy. The crowning of a New King is inevitable.

Tune in live on DAZN/ESPN+ at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Callum Smith”

IBF/WBC/WBO Light Heavyweight Championship Showdown

Canada Stand Up! Last night’s Top Rank/ESPN + Main Event between IBF/WBC/WBO Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20 Kos) and Mandatory challenger Callum Smith (29-2, 21 Kos) at the Centre Videotron in Quebec City, Canada, definitely brought the “HEAT” to a cold front inside the stadium. Real Talk!

Much was said about our aging Champion prior to the bout but what the naysayers and Callum quickly found out from the jump is that Beterbiev was and still is a dangerous man inside that squared circle.

Beterbiev came out as the aggressor never letting Callum have any breathing room to operate. Callum talked a good game about how his power was going to be the defining factor but in all reality, Callum’s power punches had absolutely no effect on Artur.

Beterbiev physically walked through the towering Callum’s poor punch output and systematically broke the man down round by round. It was a one-sided beatdown where Callum was simply absorbing heavy punches after heavy punches.

The inevitable was nearing and by the seventh round the onslaught handed out towards Callum was simply too much to handle and he succumbed twice to the floor looking drained and beaten prompting Callum’s trainer Buddy McGirt, to stop the bout and save his fighter from further damage.

Callum, a very worthy opponent, stood his ground for as long as he could but the destructive skilled enforcer that Artur is was simply too strong and too much to handle inside that squared circle.

With this convincing win now under his belt, Beterbiev maintains his perfect undefeated record of (20-0, 20 Kos) and becomes the first one to knock out Callum Smith who had never been down as an amateur or a professional and proudly retained his IBF/WBC/WBO Light Heavyweight Championship Crown.

Congratulations Champ, now onto Undisputed with undefeated WBA Light Heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol (22-0, 11 Kos).

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Anthony Yarde”

IBF/WBC/WBO Light Heavyweight Championship Showdown

Canada stand Up! Tonight’s BT Sport/ESPN + Main Event between IBF/WBC/WBO Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev (19-0, 19 Kos) and mandatory challenger Anthony Yarde (23-2, 22 Kos) at the OVO Arena in London England, definitely lived up to the hype! Real Talk!

This bout was a competitive battle right from the jump with both combatants feeling each other out and working on their respective game plan round by round. Both warriors looked strong and fit and ready for war. To me Beterbiev came out as the aggressor unlike what Anthony predicted prior to the build-up which was very surprising. Anthony felt he would be the one dictating how the bout would unfold but things quickly changed as the rounds progressed and he eventually felt Artur’s power.

Both combatants threw leather with intention to hurt each other by visibly marking each other with some very good shots but it was Artur who seemed to me to have the more telling effect as the rounds progressed.

The home-grown fighter Anthony stood his ground and represented his country to the fullest but clearly found himself in a dog fight as the rounds advanced. Both combatants were going blow for blow administering some serious damage but as the rounds developed it was Anthony who seemed to fade with fatigue in my eyes.

Anthony boxed beautifully but the pressure Beterbiev was moving in with was definitely breaking Anthony down slowly but effectively. By the eight round, the inevitable was on the horizon and when Beterbiev connected with two heavy, well-placed right hands to the dome and dropped Anthony, the writing was already on the wall.

Although Anthony rose to his feet after the standing eight count, he looked confused and defeated but proceeded to continue absorbing further punishment from Beterbiev which then quickly prompted Anthony’s corner to halt the bout.

There are levels to this boxing sh*t and although Beterbeiv was the elder of the two combatants it was his durability and his experience that carried him over this tough battle.

With this win Artur maintained his perfect knockout ratio along with his IBF/WBC/WBO Light Heavyweight Titles patiently waiting for the opportunity at undisputed with WBA Super Light heavyweight Champion Dmitry Bivol (21-0, 11 Kos).

Congratulations Artur on another destructive performance.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Joe Smith Jr.”

Light Heavyweight Unification Showdown

Last night’s intriguing Top Rank/ESPN Main Event between IBF/WBC/Ring Magazine Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev (18-0, 18 Kos) and WBO Light Heavyweight Champion Joe Smith Jr. (28-4, 22 Kos) left the fans in attendance  with their jaws dropping by the total destruction witnessed at the hands of Beterbiev at the Madison Square Garden Hulu Theater.

I anticipated a stoppage happening throughout this bout but this total annihilation by Beterbiev took me by surprise. Artur is usually a slow starter but, on this night, he came out gunslinging with his hands of stone geared up to do some serious damage.

Joe, who is also known for his power in both hands, was caught off guard by the early aggressiveness of Beterbiev. Joe attempted to go blow for blow from the first round but felt the wrath of Beterbiev’s power late in the round when he suddenly got clipped for a quick 8 count with barely any time left but survived the round.

In the second round, Beterbiev wasted no time and went straight for the kill shot by landing straight right hands to the dome of Joe that dropped him for another quick 8 count but he bounced right back up to only get dropped seconds later by another right to the dome for another quick 8 count.


Beterbiev was in seek and destroy mode from this point on and continued to administer an onslaught of unanswered straight punches to the dome that shocked Joe so hard off balance that the referee jumped in and stopped the fight after seeing how badly hurt Joe was, wondering around spaced out inside that squared circle.

Beterbiev just took down the second hardest puncher in the Light Heavyweight Division and made it look easyyyyy. With this destructive win Artur has now snatched the WBO Belt from Joe Smith Jr. and retained his IBF/WBC and Ring Magazine Belt, leaving the WBA Super Belt held by Dmitry Bivol as the only missing piece to become Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion of the World.

Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol for Undisputed is the right fight to make but only time will tell if the possibility of this match up can ever come into fruition.

Until then, congratulations Artur on another conclusive win and getting one step closer at achieving your goal of Undisputed.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Marcus Browne”

IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Championship Challenge

Last night’s GYM Promotion/Top Rank Main Event between IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev (17-0, 17 Kos) and Marcus Browne (24-2, 16 Kos) at the Bell Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada was the only bout on a horrendous card that made any sense. Real Talk!

No disrespect but whoever put this card together did a horrible job. None of these matchups on the card were competitive, that is until the Main Event.

The tough and durable Artur Beterbiev suffered an early cut in the fourth round when an accidental clash of heads cut him and Marcus up but saw Artur suffer the worst of it. Blood was gushing nonstop from Artur’s forehead blinding him at times, but it did not deter him from proceeding with the task at hand.

Marcus, who had a very good “game plan” kept poking in and out with a good jab and constantly moving, frustrating Artur. It was the type of “game plan” that required 100 % of your concentration and stamina to maintain throughout the night.

That being said, Artur kept his composure and continued to administer enough pressure with his heavy punches coming from all angles to slowly wear Marcus down round after round. Once Marcus felt the thumping power of Artur’s punches the original “game plan” went out the window.

Artur’s head to body attack eventually dropped Marcus in the seventh round for a quick 8 count but judging from the body language Marcus was displaying, the inevitable was near and by the ninth round a series of unanswered body shots dropped Marcus again. This time Marcus did not respond to the count forcing the referee to stop the bout.

At first glance Marcus showed he could hang with Artur but as the rounds progressed and the action picked up, it became quite clear that Artur was simply too strong of a resilient opponent for Marcus to overcome inside that squared circle. Bloodied and all, nothing was going to dissuade this man from walking out the Champion.

With this convincing win, Artur retained his IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Championship belts and the No. 1 Spot in the 175-Pound Division.

Dethroning this man from his position will not be easy but I am looking forward to see who will attempt to try.

Until then congratulations Artur on another conclusive win.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Adam Deines”

IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Title Defence

Tonight’s Top Rank Main Event was business as usual for the Defending IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev (16-0, 16 Kos) against Adam Deines (19-2-1, 10 Kos) at the Megasport Sports Palacein Moscow, Russia.

Beterbiev, who hadn’t graced the squared circle in over 17 months, did look a little rusty but definitely showed his power was still intact when he dropped Deines early in the first round for a quick 8 count.

Beterbiev looked like he wanted to get some rounds in the way he was going in round after round. I don’t blame him for that because he was coming off a serious layoff, a rib injury, and a case COVID. All of these factors would affect your performance.

That being said, Beterbiev handled himself in a professional manner and showed up in tip top shape as usual and asserted himself quite well under the circumstances. Beterbiev applied steady pressure round by round – cutting off the ring effectively but never getting out of first gear.

That said, as the rounds were piling up, Deines did do well at spots and tried to deter the heavy onslaught of  punches that was coming his way with some heavy hands from Beterbiev. It was clear from round one that Deines simply wasn’t strong enough to deal with Beterbiev’s power. Hands down!

The “End Game” was near and in the 10th round Beterbiev did just that when he dropped Deines with a heavy astonishing right hand perfectly placed that rocked his head down for the count that prompted Deines’ corner to stop the fight. Just like that, Beterbiev’s perfect knockout streak continues to 16-0, 16 Kos.

This win may not have been Beterbiev’s best work to date but he did retain his IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Titles.

Congratulations Artur! Hopefully a unification bout is on the horizon.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Oleksandr Gvozdyk”

IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Unification

Last night’s Light Heavyweight Unification bout between undefeated IBF Champion Artur Beterbiev (15-0, 15 Kos) and previously undefeated WBC Champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk (17-1, 14 Kos) at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, did not disappoint us.

It was clear from the “jump” that Gvozdyk’s “game plan” was to jab stick and move at all times and not get caught in a standstill unless he saw an opening to do so but, as the rounds wore on, I noticed some early fatigue coming from Gvozdyk due to Artur’s relentless pressure. Gvozdyk boxed well and made it harder for Beterbiev to work his “game plan” but truth be told, whenever Beterbiev connected with any leather he damn made sure it counted. Real Talk!

Beterbiev’s power was on full display last night. Artur looked focussed and fresher throughout the rounds and determined to administer pain to his opponent. Artur’s inside fighting was visibly breaking Gvozdyk down. Although Oleksandr tried his hardest to hang on in the later rounds, it was noticeably clear that fatigue had settled in by the 10th round when Artur started walking Gvozdyk down to eventually dropping him down three times in the round prompting the referee to stop the unanswered onslaught.

With this convincing win Artur is now the Unified IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Champion of the world and still maintains his status as the only current Champion with a 100% Ko percentage.

Beterbiev has once again put the Light Heavyweight Division on notice. It’s going to be hard to beat this man inside that squared circle but until your next challenge, congratulations are in order Artur and thank you for bringing home the WBC Championship Belt back to Canada.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Oleksandr Gvozdyk”

IBF/WBC Light Heavyweight Unification

Top Rank is raising up the stakes in the Light Heavyweight Division by setting up a possible fight of the year 2019 by pitting undefeated IBF Light Heavyweight Champion Artur Beterbiev (14-0, 14 Kos) against undefeated WBC Light Heavyweight Champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk (17-0 14 Kos) for a Unification bout on Friday night October 18, 2019 on ESPN and ESPN Deportes at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia.

I’m personally looking forward to this bout and anticipating it to be very competitive. These are two well-schooled Undefeated Champions who are both looking at one day, being crowned the Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion of the Division.

Styles make fights, with Beterbiev being the heavier fisted come forward type boxer and Gvozdyk being the taller rangier specialist also with power, predicting the outcome of this bout is no easy task. Both combatants will need to perform their respected “game plan” and assert themselves early come fight night.

Both warriors have heart and a determination to succeed with a very strong will to win. That being said, whichever’s “ring generalship” gets established first in my eyes may have the upper hand at dictating the pace inside that squared circle.

Beterbiev’s strong and aggressive inside fighting along with his heavy hands have proven to be a key factor for his 100% knockout ratio. It will be quite intriguing to see if and how Gvozdyk will be able to neutralize Beterbiev’s strong assets.

Skill for skill both combatants match up pretty evenly, but there can only be one crowned Unified Champion on that night, so tune in Friday night October 18, 2019 on ESPN and ESPN Deportes at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia and witness two of the top Light Heavyweight in the Division go blow for blow.

Blaze

On The Watch “It’s All About Artur Beterbiev vs Enrico Koelling”

IBF Light Heavyweight World Title

There is a new player in the Light Heavyweight Division ready to shake things up. With Andre “SOG” Ward now retired the IBF Light Heavyweight World Title was up for grabs last night at the Save Mart Arena in Fresno, California.

Undefeated #2 IBF two-time Russian Olympian Artur Beterbiev (12-0, 12 Kos) and Enrico Koelling (23-2, 6 Kos) were the two fighters enlisted to take part for the IBF Light Heavyweight World Title.

Beterbiev has won on every level he has competed at to date and this opportunity wasn’t about to be any different. His dream of becoming a World Champion was his for the taking by any means necessary.

That being said, in a not so exciting bout Beterbiev quietly dismantled Koelling by dropping him two times in the 12th round when the referee decided enough was enough and halted the bout. The fans in attendance weren’t too impressed with Artur’s performance on that night but having seen first hand how Beterbiev usually handles his opponents, I wouldn’t stress this one too tough cuz your Boy Artur can crack with extreme power and box very well. I personally would worry about the next Dude to duke it out with him because the Light Heavyweight Division is in trouble once this Dude gets it going. REAL TALK!

Congratulations “King Artur” on becoming the New IBF Light Heavyweight World Champion.

Blaze