Beterbiev vs Bivol - Video Preview/Prediction

Great video, as always.
And I totally agree with all but one of your statements Rummy.
"Bivol didn't fight someone like Beterbiev, and Beterbiev didn't fight someone like Bivol".
Imho Beterbiev was fighting someone like Bivol when he beat Gvozdyk.

 

On the money. Unfortunately we may never know now for sure.

 

Nice analysis Rummy, as usual. What was Beterbievs injury? My heart says Bivol wins but my brain Beterbiev by late stoppage.

 

Man all that work. Commiserations. I suppose you get two bites of the cherry once this is rescheduled.

 

Interesting take Rummy - and it was something I thought was the crux of the whole fight; how long into the fight does Bivol's movement and distance management control things in terms of nullifying Artur's offense, and from the other perspective, how quickly into the fight could Artur close the distance, cut off the ring and start breaking Bivol down.

I'd always thought it was a seesaw based on that and figured it probably wouldn't ebb & flow, it would just start with Bivol in control and dictating distance, with it gradually swinging to Beterbiev in the mid rounds.

What I really couldn't predict - as there is no blueprint for it with either fighter as no one to date has got close to either of 'em, was 1) Bivols fortitude in the face of adversity, especially if it came earlier in the fight 2) Beterbiev's ability to avoid getting frustrated if Bivol proved elusive and he was trailing going into championship rounds

It's a crying shame that we might never get to see it now - and even if we do, it would have major asterisks to it following such a serious injury to Artur

Dammit!

 

Thanks for another excellent video Rummy! It's a real bummer that the fight has been postponed, but I hope Beterbiev recuperates fully and perhaps there's still a chance for the match to happen, although he is up there in years.

It's funny but my thought pattern was almost exactly the same as yours, when it was announced I went with Bivol because I usually tend to favor the boxer over the puncher, but as the days were drawing closer I wasn't quite so sure about that and was beginning to think maybe it's toss up.

 

I been watching these kinds of simple standup Euro fighters get so much undue spotlight for so many years, man. They do almost everything standing up, with the same two kinds of punches. The only thing these guys got is a left hand and a right and then that's about it. You cannot compete with the top American athletes with two kinds of punches; it's just too bad for us the best American athletes are in other sports now. Or these guys would really be in some trouble.

 

Great video. I largely agree with your analysis. This is a hard one to predict, because at their best both these guys are so dominant in what they do. Bivol is a master at moving around the ring ... Beterbiev cuts it off masterfully. He always manages in the end to make the other guy fight his fight. But, so does Bivol. Beterbiev has excellent stamina. But, so does Bivol. Beterbiev hits like a hammer ... but Bivol's chin is certified A grade.

I'm thinking that I lean towards Bivol in this one.

I think that the age question is going to rear its ugly head and that Bivol's lightning hand speed is going to dictate the pace of the fight.

Beterbiev for sure has some sneaky tricks like stepping on feet to stop the other guy from being too mobile, but likely Bivol has seen this and is ready for it. I like straight punches over crooked ones for the range. I also think that Bivol hits harder than people give him credit for.

Finally, while I actually prefer prime Gvozdyk over Bivol, I feel that Bivol has refined his hit-and-don't be hit game to a level beyond anybody in the division. Gvozdyk had some genuine power, which tempted him to exchange with Beterbiev. Bivol will have no such illusions.