With Oleksandr Usyk defeating Tyson Fury, the long-pending question regarding the heavyweight division’s undisputed champion finally met with a closure earlier this year. It was over to light heavyweight. But for the unified champion Artur Beterbiev‘s injuries, the weight class had nearly gotten the answers on June 1. Thankfully, the much-anticipated bout never weaned off the radar. A new date arrived. Now Beterbiev will meet Dmitry Bivol on October 21 instead.

Given only two months left for the Riyadh Season show, both the champions are heavily immersed in training. But often, when things get a bit serious, a humorous escape works wonders to relieve the stress and lighten the mood. Incidentally, one such case came to prominence when fans saw Artur Beterbiev training in front of a strip of plants. Many wasted no time taking a dig as they grasped the sheer hilarity of the short clip.

Artur Beterbiev in the thick(et) of fight

Incidentally, the Reddit clip is very aptly titled, “Artur Beterbiev ‘leaves’ boxing.” The nearly ten-second-long video shows the champion shadowboxing in front of a row of greenery. Starting with a few uppercuts, Beterbiev moves before launching a jab—to the face and then to the body. Combinations—one, two quickly follow. All around, his lead hands touch the leaves.

Artur Beterbiev leaves boxing
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In January, the Canadian-Russian fighter dispatched Callum Smith, some ten days before his 39th birthday. It was his second unified title defense. It was time to up the ante. What better to do so than go against WBA champion Dmitry Bivol? A clash between the two well-known names has always been one of the most sought-after bouts in recent times.

The fight received a date, June 1. However, while in training, Artur Beterbiev ruptured his meniscus. Since the fight was already scheduled, Bivol went ahead fighting a challenger, Malik Zinad. The organizers rescheduled the undisputed duel to a new date.

Artur Beterbiev (h)edges over Dmitry Bivol

Most of the fans took the video lightheartedly, with many calling out Beterbiev’s training in front of the plants as preparing for a fight with Caleb ‘Plant’. Let’s check what some of them had to say.

Stressing that Artur Beterbiev should hang his gloves, this fan took an obvious dig, claiming the champion might suffer yet another injury if he takes on the foliage.

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The next fan also followed suit. They rather went ahead and awarded the plant a win over Beterbiev.

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The following user, though, had a question; they wanted to know how come a boxer who appears so listless in training gets so charged when he faces a foe.

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Comparing Artur Beterbiev with the manga extraterrestrial character ‘Saiyan’, the next fan pointed out that unlike many, the ravages of age seem to barely affect the light heavyweight champion. They expect him to wrap up Bivol’s challenge in the early rounds.

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Playing on the words, this fan used ‘leaves’ to call out how they appear inexperienced in comparison to the world champion.

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It will be a sight to watch two of the strongest practitioners of the art going against each other in a finale.

Dmitry Bivol may still have a few more left in the sport. But it doesn’t look so in Artur Beterbiev’s case. Next year, in January, he will celebrate his fortieth birthday. By boxing standards, that’s a fairly advanced age. There is no depreciation in his power and agility; the Montreal resident has proven it time and again. But equations often change after meeting a boxer of Bivol’s pedigree. Closing his outstanding career with an undisputed title would for sure become the icing on the cake for the 100% KO artist.

Between Bivol and Beterbiev, who would you pick for the undisputed championship?