The Dmitry Bivol Bandwagon

Just received word that Canelo is insisting on having all 3 judges come from Ukraine for this fight. I guess he’s just showing support or something.

 

Yeah, but FM did actually win. Nothing controversial about that, except the judge that had Alvarez winning of course.

 

I was there once.

I stepped out.

 

I think Bivol has the ingredients to be a real hard nut for Canelo.

• Great sense of distance
• Brilliant footwork
• Good timing and combinations - at the right times
• Decent pop
• Defensively sound
• Decent engine and workrate

The big unknowns for me in Bivol is whether he maybe is too one-dimensional; he has honed his basic style into executing what he does so well, but if Canelo can get close and walk through him to connect to the body, can Bivol adapt?

Whilst I think Bivol has gears to go through and arguable only fights a level above his opponent to get the win, my big question is whether those gears include just his - flawlessly executed - basic style.

Because of how elusive Canelo is, and his great counterpunching, I think Bivol will need to show things he hasn't shown before to get the win.

Because let's face it - he needs to stop Canelo, or at least have a couple of knockdowns and put a decision beyond doubt, because - especially as a Russian in today's climate - he ain't getting a decision if the bout is even remotely competetive which it will be.

My guess is the fight might unfold with the early rounds being somewhat like Canelo v Plant, but with Bivol being a LOT more dominant and possibly even hurting Canelo.

But as the fight goes, Canelo will start to adjust and either make Bivol miss and get closer to the body - where Canelo has really perfected his hooks - or possibly even just walk through and 'take one to give one'. So at that point it will be a question of whether Bivol can adjust in response, and I'm not sure he can. That said, I still see it as entirely possible that Bivol's execution and management of distance is just too good for Canelo to set his shots, but I think that's less likely.

It's hard to see Bivol stopping Canelo, which points to a controversial Canelo decision.

 

If you watch Bivol vs Richards, you will notice how Bivol fades in late rounds and gets a beating.

Canelo will make him count the stars in the 2nd half of the match. I say the KO will be in round 11, and that's because I'm being generous.

 

Not really watching Alvarez for the results or sense of legacy. Merely to see the quality performance he can pull off. As far as the outcome of the competition and resume, he is done for me. Too many atrocious scorings and dubious circumstances — most notably the pathetic, off-puting draw against Golovkin.

Bivol has a chance, but he'd have to fight clinically. No pure boxer wins against Canelo on the scorecards — his defense is too flashy, he is almost always the man walking forward, and he throws those 'oomph' power punches that make the judges jizz.

 

You'll get more respect tilting at a Windmill...

 

I agree, but we all know Canelo thrives off of Hollow Victories...

 

Bivol has a good chance.

He is the bigger man & posses excellent boxing skills.

To be fair to Canelo & his scorecards
When was the last time any of his close fights went to the cards?

VS Danny Jacobs & GGG 2
(both Close but No robbery)

while I don’t see Canelo
KOing Bivol. Nor Bivol KOing Nelo

If Bivol keeps him at bay (he has the reach & height advantages) & puts on a clinic
I can see him winning (though being Russian won’t help his cause on the cards , hell it might get canceled before it happens)

he has to fight perfect though, & not get “KOvalev-ed”

 

Not quite sure how you figure Bivol faded and got a beating against Richards? He was in cruise control that fight - obvious ring rust, but it wasn't close

 

How many shot score cards has Byrd been involved in??? She needs to be put to the pasture... Only Shadow and ASSOL probably agree with her.

 

She had Mayweather shutting out Berto 120-108. I thought it was far more competitive than that. I thought Berto deserved at least a couple of rounds.

 

Did you like my post? Outlier scorecards are pretty common in boxing, I gave you some examples that you can relate to.

 

I like Bivol and I think that his skills are excellent. One dimensional? Maybe, but it's a very shiny dimension. He's got a lot of things that will trouble Canelo: great footwork, a nasty jab, good speed and enough size to take the incoming. His situational awareness is exceptional - he's hard to catch clean. Canelo will have to eat a lot of straight punches and invest in the body to slow Bivol down for the later rounds.

Frankly I'm surprised that there have to now been no reported of catchweights or other typical Clenelo tricks to advantage himself.

I'm cheering for Bivol and I think he's got an excellent chance of the upset if he comes in sharp.