James Toney vs Artur Beterbiev

Another of these guys who is 'no longer prime' the moment he loses. Gotcha.

Well, I mean, if Griffin was 'far beyond' Beterbiev then surely Harding must be on a whole other level given he beat Griffin ... right?

Nah, alright, fair enough: Beterbiev struggles against slick movers with footwork and takes a lot longer to break them down than other types of fighters. It's why Bivol is probably going to be his toughest test.

It makes every kind of sense because his footwork is entirely ordinary, as is Toney's. Neither of these guys are able to create space or angles, and rely on fighting cleverly from the pocket. Unfortunately that's Beterbiev's strength. He's a bull and fighting at close range is his bread and butter. He doesn't overcommit and yet generates a stupid amount of force with his ten inch punches. And he can keep going all night. That's why he's a nightmare for anybody who is unable to stay away from him.

 

There's a lot more to Beterbiev than work rate ffs