Honorable Turki Alalshikh wants to see WBA light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol fight David Benavidez and IBF cruiserweight champion Jai Opetaia if he defeats IBF/WBC/WBO Artur Beterbiev on October 12.
Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) didn't seem interested in fighting Opetaia or Benavidez for some reason, and some fans are questioning whether he would agree to fight either of those guys because of the risks involved.
Granted, Bivol might lose, but the payday will be great, and he gets a chance to show the fans how good he is. Fans won't be fighting that if Bivol continues to fight guys like Malik Zinad, Lyndon Arthur, and Gilberto Ramirez.
He's got a good spot against the 39-year-old Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs), who will be coming off a recent knee injury when he faces Bivol in October. That gives Bivol a huge advantage.
Going up against a young and healthy Opetaia and Benavidez will be a different story for Bivol, and he may fall apart.
Bivol will need to decide if he wants to play it safe after the Beterbiev fight or take the risk of facing Opetaia and Benavidez. Alalshikh isn't asking too much of Bivol by wanting him to fight Opetaia and Benavidez because those are the fights he should be interested in taking if he wants to fight the best.
Bivol will need his defense to be on point if he wants to beat those two fighters because they both pack a punch and will pressure Bivol the entire time.
These could be very dangerous opponents for Bivol, but if he is as good as he and his promoter Eddie Hearn think, he should have no problem beating Benavidez and Opetaia.
Having Bivol in the event of 5 vs. 5 in Saudi Arabia against Opetaia or Benavidez would be great for fans to see how well he does against those talents.
Last updated on 06/04/2024
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