Arum Teases Beterbiev vs. Bivol Rematch For October 2025
Bob Arum says a rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol could occur in October 2025.
The first fight ended in controversial circumstances after Beterbiev won a majority decision to become the Undisputed Light Heavyweight Champion: 114-114, 115-113, 116-112. One scorecard read 116-112 for Beterbiev, raising much criticism, as Eddie Hearn called it disgusting. Some in the boxing community felt that Bivol had done enough to win the bout, whilst others favoured Beterbiev, showing inconsistency in the scoring. Carl Froch felt Bivol was the better fighter, while Claressa Shields had picked Beterbiev.
That has created the narrative for a rematch. However, the Riyadh Season runs from October and finishes in February, meaning that fans will have to wait for a rematch. Arum confirmed that the Saudis have received some pushback for holding events outside of Saudi Arabia. There are reports that their US card headlined by Terence Crawford and Israil Madrimov had a loss. Therefore, Arum confirmed that boxing fights are likely to occur in the Kingdom, meaning that October is the earliest.
Arum Reacts
“Turki, who’s a guy who loves boxing, wants to see a rematch, and I think the public would love to see a rematch. But again, because the Riyadh Season ends in February, the earliest date for a rematch would be next October. I think there was a lot of pushback on His Excellency for doing fights outside of Saudi Arabia and outside of Riyadh Season.
“I think going forward, in order to tap into the large budget that they will have, they will have to do the fights in Riyadh Season in Saudi Arabia, which makes sense. So it may mean that each of these guys fight one more time against other opponents, and then for October of next year, they do the rematch. I think that is, from a business standpoint, the likeliest thing that will happen,” Arum said
What’s Next?
That requires Bivol and Beterbeiv to potentially have fights in between to remain active. The IBF has also ordered Beterbiev to defend his IBF title against Michael Eifert. So the rematch could happen for undisputed, something fans missed out on when Tyson Fury faced Oleksandr Usyk. Usyk won the first fight via a split decision to become the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion. However, he would vacate his belt after the IBF ordered him to defend it. Daniel Dubois then became the IBF Heavyweight Champion as the Fury and Usyk rematch will take place on December 21.
Nevertheless, it is important to consider the following: If the rematch is delayed, there is no guarantee that it will happen. Beterbiev is 39 years old and has nothing else to prove in the sport now that he has picked up all the belts. There is also no guarantee that Bivol and Beterbiev would win their next fight. However, given that there is an order from the IBF, Bivol is unlikely to want to take that fight without it being undisputed. Bivol has repeatedly said that was the goal, and based on how he performed in the first fight, he will fancy himself in the rematch. Fans had plenty to say about the prospective rematch happening in October.
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