Artur Beterbiev beats Dmitry Bivol to become undisputed light heavyweight champion

Artur Beterbiev was crowned king of the light-heavyweight division with a razor-close points win over Dmitry Bivol.

This was not the all-out war so many expected but it was an enthralling fight from the first bell to the last. Billed as the power puncher against the more stylish boxer , it was a blockbuster battle with the first undisputed champion in this division since Roy Jones Jr was crowned in 1999.

Beterbiev added the WBA strap to his IBF, WBC and WBO belts with the scorecards of 114-114, 115-113 and 116-112. The latter card was too wide for the fight those in Riyadh watched live. But this bout could have gone any way with so many rounds so close. Beterbiev was not happy with his performance while Bivol was brilliant and refused to criticise the decision. It was that kind of contest.

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Beforehand, there was an elaborate show with Missy Elliott and Busta Rhymes to open ‘Riyadh Season’. But Beterbiev is not one for big entrances. He walked out in a sweaty white t-shirt he no doubt just warmed up in.

Bivol hardly looked flustered by the big occasion either. Both men remain the very best boxers across the whole sport. There was a rivalry simmering for years from their amateur days when they sometimes shared the same team on trips with Russia . It grew over the years as both rose up the light-heavyweight ranks and began collecting belts.

But this was so close and well-matched we probably still don’t know who the best is between the two. A rematch is needed.

Canadian-based Beterbiev, at 39, started the first menacingly trying to walk Bivol down, popped his jab but his Russian compatriot looked unlikely to engage. Bivol, now with a record of 23-1, did step in on occasion to land a right and get back on the back foot. But the round ended in electric fashion with both men exchanging big rights.

Bivol, the fresher man at 33, boxed beautifully on the back foot, he picked his jabs with a nice left hook as well and the odd right. Beterbiev pacing round but the 39-year-old who underwent a serious knee surgery earlier this year was not at his best early on.

In the third, a good counter right from Bivol hurt Beterbiev and made him take a backward step for the first time. Then there was a cute right over the top from Beterbiev but nothing was knocking Bivol out of his rhythm here.

Bivol’s jab was superb throughout, he worked it well to try to keep Beterbiev at bay and it was superb in the fourth. You know it is a good fight when the referee is barely involved and the third man in the ring could have put his feet up here for most of this.

Beterbiev landed a clever, cutting jab and then a superb body shot in the fifth before Bivol landed a counter right. It was engrossing stuff. It felt like Beterbiev wasn’t getting enough of his right hands through the guard but a swelling started to grow under Bivol’s eye.

Bivol started the seventh again with a lovely counter right after the pick of the jabs in the round. Beterbiev clearly hurt him though, towards the end of the round. Californian-based Bivol was cute again with another counter right as Beterbiev swung wildly in the eighth.

Bivol was constantly on the back foot, popping jabs and trying to step in with the right but Beterbiev was never perturbed. The last three rounds were really close, each man having their own success in different ways and they were hard to split.

For the first time in 21 fights, Beterbiev heard the final bell of one of his contents. He got the nod but Bivol could have certainly got it on another day. Many inside the Kingdom Arena thought he had done enough. Nobody will turn down watching this one again, though.