Dmitry Bivol Set to Face Another Undefeated Boxer After Artur Beterbiev’s Withdrawal; Demoted to Co-main

Dmitry Bivol has only one goal to achieve in professional boxing. The WBA Light-Heavyweight champion of the world wants to become an undisputed champion in the sport! For the same reason, on June 1 this year, Dmitry Bivol was supposed to square off against Artur Beterbiev with the undisputed Light-Heavyweight title on the line. However, an unprecedented injury spilled water on the plans.

Only yesterday, it was reported that since Beterbiev had a ruptured meniscus, his fight against Bivol was being postponed. And today, Mike Copponger from ESPN revealed the fighter who would substitute Beterbiev to face Bivol on June 1st.

As it is known, Bivol vs. Beterbiev belonged to the Matchroom vs. Queensberry 5-on-5 series proposed by His Excellency Turki Alalshikh. Besides Bivol’s match, the card will feature Filip Hrgovic vs. Daniel Dubois and Zhilei Zhang vs. Deontay Wilder, among three other fights. And now since Beterbiev vs. Bivol remains canceled for the time being, Bivol’s bout has been downgraded to the co-main event.

Taking to X, Mike Coppinger from ESPN wrote, “Dmitry Bivol will defend his WBA light heavyweight title vs. Libya’s Malik Zinad (22-0, 16 KOs) on June 1 in Riyadh following Artur Beterbiev’s withdrawal, @Turki_Alalshikh tells ESPN.”

“Deontay Wilder-Zhilei Zhang, part of the Matchroom-Queensberry 5 v 5, is the new main event,” he added. At this, while it may be disappointing for fans who eagerly awaited Bivol vs. Beterbiev, it is certainly good news for Deontay Wilder, who returns after the loss against Joseph Parker in December last year. Meanwhile, in case you are wondering, here is all you need to know about Bivol’s new opponent, Malik Zinad.

Dmitry Bivol’s next opponent, Malik Zinad, promises an entertaining night

If you were upset because Artur Beterbiev pulled out from the fight, then just hold that thought because Malik Zinad is no easy walk. Just like Bivol, Zinad, 30, is undefeated with 22 professional wins. In addition to it, the boxer from Libya has 16 impressive knock-out victories. Besides, Zinad, at 6’1″, is an inch taller than Bivol who often enjoyed a certain reach advantage against boxers in the ring. For example, when Bivol faced Canelo Alvarez, the former was able to keep Canelo at bay and constantly jabbed the latter’s body.

Anyway, with Zinad, it is likely that Bivol will not enjoy much of a reach advantage. However, on the other hand, if we take a closer look at Zinad’s stats, the Libyan boxer had only one fight scheduled for 12 rounds. But, as we know, Bivol has already gone the distance of 12 rounds 10 times in the sport! So, definitely, Bivol has displayed a certain stamina Zinad is yet to show. Anyway, given the fact that Zinad is three years younger than Bivol and has already won 22 fights, we can expect him to give the WBA champ a run for his money. So, what do you think of Dmitry Bivol vs. Zinad? Let us know in the comments below.