Dmitry Bivol was able to redeem his sole career loss on Saturday night as he was victorious in the main event of ‘The Last Crescendo’. The win meant Bivol would become undisputed world light heavyweight champion.
It was a majority decision victory for the Russian as fans are now calling for a trilogy bout between Bivol and Artur Beterbiev.
Beterbiev won their first meeting in October, also winning via majority decision. However, the Russian-Canadian tasted defeat for the first time thanks to a stellar performance from Bivol.
The build-up to the fight was respectful between the pound-for-pound greats, with Bivol and Beterbiev even naming each other’s strengths prior to the bout.
Even in the immediate aftermath of the bout, Bivol and Beterbiev exchanged niceties.
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What Dmitry Bivol said to Artur Beterbiev following incredible rematch
Following the announcement that Bivol was the victor of the rematch, he was seen talking to his opponent Beterbiev.
In his post-fight interview, Bivol explained what he said to his light heavyweight rival.
“I told him, ‘Artur, I respect you so much because when I was young and I came to [the] national team, I was looking up to you. [The way] you were training, and you were the number one, I really respect you, and I want to shake your hand and say thank you for this fight,'” Bivol said.
In response, Bivol said that Beterbiev thanked him for the fight and told him that he was a ‘good fighter’.
The now unified champion also added that Beterbiev alluded to having a trilogy bout, saying that he wouldn’t shake his hand then due to the anticipation of a third meeting.
Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol II had the same scorecards as the first meeting with different winners
Bivol would be the winner of the headline bout in ‘The Last Crescendo’ via majority decision, the same method of victory that Beterbiev had in their first meeting.
However, not only was the type of decision victory the same, but the three scorecards mirrored those of the first bout.
Bivol was the winner of the second bout with the scorecards reading 115-113, 116-112, and 114-114.
In the first meeting, Beterbiev’s winning scorecards also read 115-113, 116-112, and 114-114.
It is currently unclear as to whether or not the two will have an immediate third bout.