Bivol’s path to Canelo’s rematch: an obstacle to Beterbiev and a golden carrot

Dmitry Bivol could put himself in position for a lucrative rematch with Canelo Alvarez if he defeats undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev in their rematch Feb. 22 in Riyadh.

Beterbiev intervenes

Matchroom boss Eddie Hearn says if Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs) beats Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) next month, Canelo can get up to 175 to challenge him for the undisputed championship.

The way Beterbiev finished great, chasing a scared and tired looking man Bivol in the ring, likely to win the rematch on February 22nd. Canelo has said nothing about wanting to fight Beterbiev if he wins the second fight with Bivol. The only one who has a chance to fight the popular Mexican star is Bivol for obvious reasons. He is a finesse fighter.

The original hope was for Bivol to beat Beterbiev in the Oct. 12 fight and then face Canelo for all the gold. Unfortunately for Dmitry and Hearn, Beterbiev won a 12-round majority decision to ruin things.

“I’m not sure what Canelo will do. What other fights are for him? Crawford, I don’t see that happening. [David] Benavidez is now at 175. I don’t think he’ll ever get back to 168 and he’s fought hard against [David] Morrell,” Eddie Hearn told The Stomping Ground YouTube channel, speaking about Canelo Alvarez’s options.

“If Bivol beats Beterbiev in the rematch, Canelo can rematch Bivol for the undisputed championship at 175. It’s a big carrot. It’s a tough fight,” Hearn said.

It’s understandable why Hearn would be interested in a Canelo-Bivol rematch; it will bring a lot of money and its fighter, Bivol, would be one of the favorites to win. It’s not like a match where Bivol would be at huge risk of losing, like if he moved up to lightweight to challenge IBF champion Jai Opetaia. It would be a nightmare for Bivol.

Canelo hasn’t mentioned wanting a rematch with Bivol lately, and it’s questionable whether he would unless the money is huge. He has options at 168 against Terence Crawford and several other fighters. Bivol was too big for Canelo in their fight three years ago, and a rematch would seem pointless.

The first Canelo-Bivol fight

Three years ago, on May 7, 2022, Bivol defeated Canelo by unanimous decision in 12 rounds at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The scores were 115-113 x 3, but the fight seemed much more one-sided than that. Canelo then said he had been struggling with injuries and hadn’t been training well. He initially wanted a rematch but then changed his mind and never revisited the idea.