Artur Beterbiev has made it clear he isn’t chasing a future matchup with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, even though the latter has hinted at returning to light heavyweight after potentially facing William Scull and Terence Crawford at 168. Beterbiev, who defends his undisputed light-heavyweight championship in a rematch with Dmitry Bivol on Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, says Alvarez no longer has anything to offer in the 175-pound division.
Bivol was his hardest fight: Watch
The 40-year-old Russian scored a majority decision over Bivol in October to become the weight class’s top dog. Now, he’s focused on keeping all four of his belts rather than worrying about bouts that might never materialize. "I wanted to fight [Canelo] when he was the champion in my category," Beterbiev explains, "but now he doesn’t have anything in my category." He remains open, however, to facing David Benavidez, calling him a logical option if he moves up and becomes mandatory.
Asked about his training camp for the Bivol rematch, Beterbiev admits he’s glad to be injury-free this time, believing it will help both him and his opponent put on a better show. While strategy talk often grabs the headlines, he insists that nothing is certain until the opening bell. "We can say anything, everything, but during the fight, it’s always different," says the hard-hitting champion.
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