In some recent boxing news, Eddie Hearn has confirmed that Dmitry Bivol will return to the ring in December to defend his WBA light heavyweight title.

Bivol’s last fight was a unanimous-decision win over Zurdo Ramirez in 2022. Prior to that, Bivol had gotten the better of Canelo Alvarez. Then the talk turned towards an undisputed light heavyweight fight against Artur Beterbiev.

However, given the WBC’s ban on Russian boxers fighting for its belt due to the Ukrainian conflict, Bivol was left in a difficult position. In addition, an injury had been keeping the fighter out, while an opponent was not forthcoming.

A rematch with Canelo broke down over disagreements with the weight class. The Mexican wanted to run things back at 175. Meanwhile Bivol’s aim was to fight for all of Alvarez’s belts at 168. But now it appears that Bivol has overcome those hurdles even if an opponent has not been named. 

Hearn On Bivol

"He’s been out with a hand injury for a while now, but he’s back training, and he’s ready to fight in December. We offered Dan Aziz the fight and obviously [Joshua] Buatsi before that, Lyndon Arthur as well. Not many are queuing up to fight Dmitry Bivol, I understand, but we expect to see him back in December, and we’re working on a show in November and a show in December that we’re looking to finalize at the moment. So, hopefully, we see him back soon," Hearn stated 

A win for Bivol will be crucial for his ambitions moving forward. If Bivol can get an exemption from the WBC to fight for their belt, a bout with Beterbiev could happen.

Outside of that, Bivol has indicated his intention to fight Jermell Charlo if the latter can overcome Canelo on September 30th, 2023. So either way, Bivol could be set for some big fights. 

Hearn On Haney-Prograis

Meanwhile, Eddie Hearn has defended the decision to out Devin Haney vs. Regis Prograis on DAZN pay-per-view. The subscribers of DAZN in the USA are currently charged $224.99 for the whole year for a membership.

Therefore, the news of a pay-per-view did raise many talking points. After all, DAZN was based on the idea of phasing out pay-per-view for a fixed-monthly fee.

However, Hearn justified the decision on the basis that both fighters wanted to secure bigger paydays. Although that is understandable since they are prize fighters, it has not gone down well with the public which is why Hearn has now responded. 

"In America, not not in the UK, and I just think a little bit of a sign of the times. I think it’s a little bit a sign of the times. You see, I don’t know if it’s going to get announced, but the rumor of Showtime leaving boxing. It’s an expensive sport. You know these fighters want a lot of money, and sometimes the only model that works is that model," Hearn stated 

The news came in light of Haney’s last fight against Vasiliy Lomachenko, which was also on pay-per-view via ESPN. While the biggest fighters such as Canelo Alvarez and Gervonta Davis can still command pay-per-view events, Haney is not the most marketable fighter.

This is despite him being the youngest undisputed champion of the four-belt era. But in reality, Haney’s defensive style is far from the explosive skill set that has made Tank Davis and Canelo pay-per-view stars. And there is no getting away from that.