Dmitry Bivol retained his WBA light heavyweight title in a shutout over Lyndon Arthur, Daniel Dubois stopped Jarrell “Big Baby” Miller and we got an upset on today’s Judgment Day card in Riyadh.
Bivol improved to 22-0 (11 KO) with his only fight of 2023, winning by three scores of 120-107 over Arthur (23-2, 16 KO), who encountered a somewhat more aggressive Bivol early in the fight. , then to a large extent. shelled.
There is some credit to be given to Arthur for facing the full 12 against a Bivol who, at least at times, looked like he wanted a stoppage, but also fought negatively for the vast majority of the fight.
Bivol now hopes to fight the winner of January’s fight between Artur Beterbiev and Callum Smith.
“It was good training for me. Lyndon was using a good shot,” Bivol said. “I’m glad I got this fight at the end of the year and now I see my goal: [become] indisputable. I hope this fight happens in 2024.”
The WBC, which controls one of the three belts Beterbiev holds, would have to change its stance on Russian fighters who still say they are from Russia for the fight to take place for the four main light heavyweight titles.
Beterbiev, like Bivol, was born in Russia, but declares himself a fighter in Canada, where he has lived for many years. Bivol still represents Russia.
Daniel Dubois TKO-10 Jarrell Miller
“Big Baby” Miller did a lot of talking in the buildup to this fight, and was competitive for the first half or so, and then it was pretty much over. The 333-pound Miller simply didn’t have the gas tank to continue competing seriously, and Dubois was simply the better wrestler, period.
Dubois (20-2, 19 KO) actually hit Miller (26-1-1, 22 KO) in the 10th round, prompting the referee to stop the fight.
The idea that this will be “the end” for Miller is ridiculous, to be clear. He’s a charismatic guy who can talk fights better than anyone. He will get more fights if he wants them, and he will also get them at a notable level.
And to also give Miller some credit, he shook Dubois’s hand and congratulated his enemy. The act was over, the fight had gone as it was, and he openly told the world that Dubois had earned his respect.
It’s obvious that if Miller really wants to compete at the highest level, he’ll have to lose some weight. No one is reasonably suggesting that he drop to 250 or anything like that, but even three bills would be a big step and would give him a lot more energy in the ring, if he can do it. He said it in his post-fight comments.
This was probably more of a “must win” for Dubois, who is much younger but had been labeled a quitter, which for many boxing fans is much worse than spectacularly failing several drug tests. A loss here, to an opponent of Miller’s level rather than Usyk or even Joe Joyce, could have made him really question his own future.
Agit Kabayel TKO-4 Arslanbek Makhmudov
If you’ve read my posts long enough, you’ll know that I try to avoid being someone who overuses terms like “exposed,” but this was Makhmudov completely exposed and beaten into submission, looking like little more than a heavy, loaded… fighter of speed without depth in his game.
Kabayel (24-0, 16 KO) had a real breakout here, and the 31-year-old European champion could find himself in contention for much bigger opportunities in 2024. Makhmudov (
Jai Opetaia TKO-1 Ellis Zorro
Easy victory for Opetaia (24-0, 19 KO), who landed a powerful shot that forcefully knocked down Zorro (17-1, 7 KO). If the bottom rope hadn’t caught Zorro’s head, it could have been even worse, but he was up and conscious and all that later.
Opetaia vacated the IBF cruiserweight title earlier this week to accept this fight, which was a big payday for him, but he still has the Ring belt, for what it’s worth, and is still universally viewed as the best cruiserweight in the world, unless Maybe it’s related to Chris Billam-Smith.
Filip Hrgovic TKO-1 Mark De Mori
Exactly the embarrassing mismatch we expected for the IBF mandatory heavyweight challenger.
Hrgovic is now 17-0 (13 KOs), while De Mori is 41-3-2 (36 KOs).
Frank Sanchez TKO-7 Junior Fa
Sanchez started slow here, which for some reason surprised Sergio Mora and Darren Barker, who may not have seen a Frank Sanchez fight before. But eventually, the Cuban began to rebuild and at the end of the sixth he floored Fa.
Two more falls occurred in the seventh, leading to the stoppage at 2:42.
Sanchez (24-0, 17 KO) could end up in line for a fight for the vacant IBF title next year depending on what happens with that belt. The 31-year-old Cuban was a big favorite in this fight and finally showed why as the 34-year-old Fa falls to 20-3 (11 KO).
