The reigning Fighter of the Year finally made his way to the ring to resume his winning ways.
Dmitry Bivol will most certainly not land in the running to repeat that honor but managed to turn away the challenge of Lyndon Arthur to defend his WBA light heavyweight title and capture Arthur’s IBO strap. Bivol floored Arthur late in the eleventh round en route to a shutout victory (120-107 on all three scorecards) Saturday evening at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Bivol-Arthur was the second of two championship fights as part of an eight-fight ‘Day of Reckoning’ Pay-Per-View show. Anthony Joshua-Otto Wallin and Deontay Wilder-Joseph Parker co-headline an event that features six heavyweight bouts.
It was never Bivol’s intention to go 51 weeks into 2023 before his first fight following his 2022 Fighter of the Year campaign. The long-reigning WBA titlist was out of the ring nearly 14 months by the time the opening bell sounded but there was no warm-up period required. Bivol immediately took the fight to Arthur, a first-time major title challenger despite the billing as a WBA-IBO unification bout.
Steady pressure applied by Bivol forced Arthur on the defensive and in retreat mode. The 32-year-old Manchester native fought for the third time on the year, including a tenth-round knockout of Braian Suarez in September to win the vacant IBO title he handed over on Saturday. In that fight, Arthur had to overcome a first-round knockdown to put down Suarez for the full ten count to earn his fourth straight win.
Bivol never allowed the Brit any hope of extending that streak. The only question was whether he would be able to secure his first stoppage win in nearly six years, when he halted Sullivan Barrera in the 12th and final round of a March 2018 title defense. He’s gone the distance in eight straight fights preceding Saturday, including a career-best win over then pound-for-pound king Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez last May in Las Vegas.
The right hand was on point for Bivol, to which Arthur was unable to offer a response through seven rounds. His first sign of life came in the eighth, when Arthur was able to connect with a body shot. Bivol briefly stopped punching, but managed to pick up the pace in the closing seconds of the round.
Bivol returned to fluid combination throughout round nine. Arthur began the frame effectively fighting off the ropes but left himself open for Bivol’s jab and straight right hand to the body. Bivol followed with right hands upstairs,
Arthur was unable to defend against Bivol’s power shots in the tenth. His only response was false bravado, as he tapped his chest and dared Bivol to come forward. Bivol obliged, though never to the point of wasting punches.
Bivol produced the bout’s lone knockdown in the closing seconds of the eleventh. Arthur was trapped along the ropes as Bivol landed a barrage of punches. A left hook to the body forced the Brit to a knee but he was able to beat the count and make it out the round.
Referee John Latham gave Arthur a long, hard look as Bivol pummeled his challenger along the ropes in the first 30 seconds of the twelfth and final round. A brief clinch was just enough to stall that momentum and Arthur was able to throw back just enough to avoid the fight being stopped. Bivol picked up the pace in the final 30 seconds of the fight and jarred Arthur with left hooks both upstairs and to the body.
Arthur absorbed the shots and made it to the final bell, but fell to 23-2 (16KOs) with his first defeat since a fourth-round knockout loss to Anthony Yarde in their December 2021 rematch. It came exactly 52 weeks after he defeated his countryman in an upset decision win.
Bivol advanced to 22-0 (11KOs) in the eleventh defense of the WBA title he’s held since the belt was upgraded to the full status in November 2017. He admitted that at times he let Arthur off the hook but was happy to get his first win in 13 months and leave himself in position to challenge the Artur Beterbiev-Callum Smith winner to set up a long desired undisputed light heavyweight championship.
By Jake Donovan