Bivol really impressed me with the shots he ate tonight and wasn’t even close to going down. I mean there’s nobody better in the sport that you can prove your whiskers against than Beterbiev. Kudos to Dmitry. I can’t wait for the rematch! Think it will be even more brilliant than this one. Bivol will be coming to get that one back no doubt! And Beterbiev will know that and be even sharper.
I think Beterbiev was a bit off, but But Bivols chin and toughness were definitely on point. Hats off to both men.
As I stated before the fight, the people banking on him getting KO'd because he got rocked by Joe Smith Jr, one of the hardest punchers in the sport, were deluding themselves. So yeah, his chin is pretty damn solid, although some of it does have to do with his immaculate defense.
Yeah, I was never convinced that Beterbiev was going to KO Bivol. He's shown to have both a solid chin and great defense his whole career. It's always been hard for power punchers to overcome these types of fighters.
Pretty much this. The shot Smith landed was a monstrous shot right at the ear, and I'm pretty sure 90% of fighters would have been munching canvas after that one.
These are the kind of remarks that I love to hear. Bivol is going to come out retuned and hungry for a rematch. Beterbiev is an absolute force to be reckoned with in that ring. How that conversation goes remains to be seen. Can't wait though.
I think Bivol has very good vision. He can see what's coming. That's a good thing to have if you want good defense.
He showed good toughness and chin but a lot of that was because he took a lot off of so many punches while backing up, and slight head movements backwards while deflecting a substantial amount with his guard. In other words, I attribute it more to his defence and reflexes than his chin. But yes he still showed decent chin when he needed to. And conversely, Artur showed a good chin too, imo. I know Bivol is not a big puncher but I expected his punches to have more of an effect on Artur late and Bivol landed some nice, clean shots.
Beterbiev said that he did not get to punch like he used to, that's why fight went to distance. Bivol was moving too much without landing anything
I was more impressed that he didn't wilt to the body, which Artur really dug in some great shots to. I believe that's why no one has managed to last the distance with Artur as fighters unravel and lose their shape, making mistakes. Whilst Dmitry shelled up for too long at times in the championship round, giving the optics that we was fading badly, I think based on the way that he finished he was trying too hard to find clean clear shots as opposed to just breaking up Arturs offense. But no doubt who finished the fight stronger - I think whilst Bivol did have some success to the body, he should have worked it more in rounds 7,8 & 9 while he was on top, try and take the wind out of Arturs sails for the championship rounds IMO Bivol's biggest flaw is that he headhunts a bit too much and neglects the body, which is even stranger considering his straight right to the body is a really effective shot
His chin definitely isn’t ATH, he has a really good chin but to be considered an ATG in that department you need a Canelo or GGG chin