There’s pretty much no one left at the top of the light heavyweight division. Well, just Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev. The rest of the top contenders have fallen by the wayside. Either Beterbiev crushed them or Bivol danced circles around them. Either way, there’s no one remaining to give them a real fight. Well, outside of each other.
For entirely too long, both pound-for-pound stars have planted their flag at the top of the division but have failed to prove who’s the better man. Currently, the two fighters are in line to collide on June 1 in Saudi Arabia, where they will fully unify the division.
The conjecture surrounding their fight is split down the middle. On one half, some are convinced that Beterbiev will run Bivol (22-0, 11 KOs) over and make him knockout victim number 21. However, on the other side, some are of the belief that Bivol would cruise. Simply put, Beterbiev’s power is scary, but it means nothing if you can’t hit the target cleanly.
Like everyone else, Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez is looking forward to seeing them in the ring. Of course, the former super middleweight champion turned light heavyweight/cruiserweight contender, has a bit of history with Bivol.
In 2022, Ramirez found Bivol’s movement and awkward timing bemusing, resulting in a lopsided decision loss. He hasn’t been fortunate, or maybe unfortunate, enough to swap fists with Beterbiev but Ramirez doesn’t believe he has to.
Just from watching Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) from the outside, the power he carries in both fists is scary. But, with that said, if the two do get it on, he has a feeling that Bivol’s full package would be a bit too much for Beterbiev to deal with.
“I think Bivol,” Ramirez told ESNEWS when asked who he believes will win. “He’s skillful, he moves. I like him.”