Bivol Could Drop Beterbiev, Says Chris Algieri

Chris Algieri believes we could see Artur Beterbiev knocked down by WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol on October 12th. Algieri feels that Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) has the power to put Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) down at some point in their headliner clash at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh.

It’s difficult to imagine Bivol dropping IBF, WBC, and WBO champion Beterbiev when he couldn’t knockdown Lyndon Arthur, Gilberto Ramirez, Canelo Alvarez, Craig Richards or Joe Smith.

If Bivol couldn’t knock those fighters down, it doesn’t seem realistic to assume he’s going to be able to drop Beterbiev. Bivol is not going to want to take the risk of sitting down on his shots in front of Beterbiev and getting clipped. That might happen anyway, even with Bivol using his normal hit-and-run style.

“Don’t be surprised if Bivol catches Beterbiev square at some point during this fight, which should blow everyone’s mind because you’re looking at a boxer putting the puncher down on the mat,” said Chris Algieri to Probox TV, discussing the possibility of Dmitry Bivol knocking Artur Beterbiev down during their fight.

“We’ve seen Beterbiev down before. We’ve seen Bivol score some really good knockdowns and knockouts. So, it wouldn’t be that foreign to see that situation happen,” said Algieri.

The only true knockdown Beterbiev has suffered was against Callum Johnson in 2018, but it wasn’t a bad one. He got up and knocked Johnson out in the next round. Earlier in his career, Beterbiev was dropped by Jeff Page Jr. by a flash knockdown.

“Beterbiev is a very good boxer with a very deep amateur background, and we’ve been seeing his skillset showing up more recently as he’s gotten older. I’m not sure if that’s because he’s not as ferocious as he used to be. He has to be smarter and more deceptive on his way in,” said Algieri.

Beterbiev has been fighting bigger punchers recently than he had earlier in his career, and he’s had to be more defensively alert. If Beterbiev had fought guys like Callum Smith and Anthony Yarde earlier in his career, he would have been more cautious about attacking them.

“We’re seeing him use his jab, close the distance, and position himself much better. Bivol is certainly not a puncher, but he can punch enough to get respect. Even in the Canelo fight, he was able to disarm an offensive machine in Canelo with his power, his ability to punch, and his combination punching with the stiffness of his shots. This is a very complicated, nuanced matchup,” said Algieri.

Canelo Alvarez was more bothered by the rapid-fire three-punch combinations that Bivol was throwing in their fight in 2022, and he didn’t possess the size or power to make him pay. If Bivol were the same size as Canelo, he couldn’t have fought like that without getting knocked out becaue he was putting himself at risk against him due to being the much bigger guy.

“You talk about Bivol’s punching power. We’ve seen some sharp right hands. They surprise you with speed. They’re deceptive, and all of a sudden, you see his right-hand landing, and guys get hurt,” said Paulie Malignaggi.

Bivol does have good power in his right hand, but it’s not on the level of some of Beterbiev’s recent opponents. These former Beterbiev knockout victims have better power than Bivol:

– Anthony Yarde
– Callum Smith
– Radivoje Kalajdzic
– Joe Smith Jr.
– Oleksandr Gvozdyk
– Callum Johnson

Bivol could be a better puncher if he weren’t so focused on his in-and-out style. He’s always thinking of his exit strategy and is unwilling to stand flat-footed to load up on his shots the way power punchers do. Perhaps one reason for that is that Bivol has been hurt in the past, and he doesn’t want to take the chance of getting tagged hard.