On Saturday, unbeaten Dmitry Bivol retained his WBA light-heavyweight world title unanimously over Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, handing the Mexican superstar his second professional loss.
Bivol, 31, of Russia improved to 20-0 with 11 knockouts, while Alvarez, the multiweight champion and firm favorite, dropped to 57-2 with two draws. Floyd Mayweather was his only other defeat at light-middleweight in 2013.
In November, when he stopped Caleb Plant, Alvarez made boxing history by becoming the first man to unify all four super middleweight world championship belts.
He has previously competed at light-heavyweight, stopping Sergey Kovalev in the eleventh round in November 2019 to earn the WBO 175-pound title.
But there would be no late heroics against Bivol, who aggressively harassed Alvarez throughout the fight and never appeared to be severely injured by the Mexican, who battled to penetrate Bivol’s defense.
“He injured my arm,” Bivol stated, exhibiting a bruising on his upper arm caused by blows.
You can see on my arm where I felt his force. He struck my arm, but not my skull.
Tim Cheatham, Dave Moretti, and Steve Weisfeld all scored the fight 115-113 in Bivol’s favor.
The Cinco de Mayo weekend was a significant disappointment for the Alvarez supporters at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, who was rooting for a Mexican victory.
Bivol stated that the supporters’ cheers whenever it appeared that Alvarez was gaining headway “gave me more energy.”
Bivol fought in a disciplined manner, utilizing a piston-like jab to open the path for heavy combinations.
Alvarez pushed on the defensive, and the lighter-than-average fighter could not answer.
His face swelled, his feet appeared sluggish, and his blows lacked their customary force by the seventh round.
Alvarez stated, “He’s an excellent boxer.” “He enters and exits. He was a master’s in distance management. It is boxing.
Alvarez stated, “He is a tremendous champion.” “I failed. He prevailed.
Alvarez stated he desired a rematch despite having no objections to the outcome.
“Rematch? “No issue,” stated Bivol. Let’s have a conversation about that. You can check out OKBET for the latest updates about boxing. We recommend also the OKBET sportsbook for the illegal and secure website here in the Philippines. Read more.
