Dmitry Bivol settled for a knockout win on an evening he hoped to turn out to be undisputed champion.
That chance will now come later this fall.
The long-reigning WBA gentle heavyweight titlist remained excellent with a sixth-round stoppage of Malik Zinad. A barrage of punches compelled referee Howard Foster to cease the competition at 2:06 of the sixth spherical. Bivol (23-0, 12 knockouts) earned his first stoppage since 2018 with the win Saturday at Kingdom Enviornment in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The night time was initially meant for Bivol to face Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) for all the sunshine heavyweight belts. Beterbiev was compelled to withdraw attributable to a torn meniscus, which allowed Zinad to step in for his first main title shot.
Zinad (22-1, 16 KOs) vowed to turn out to be Libya’s first-ever main titlist and loved a robust begin. That was, till, Bivol rediscovered his energy. A left hand and straight proper floored Zinad late within the opening spherical.
The primary-time title challenger was unfazed by the sequence and continued to mock Bivol all through the battle. Zinad always waved within the sport’s second-longest reigning lively male titleholder. The posturing didn’t earn him credit score on the rounds however gained over the group.
Zinad’s spirited effort additionally caught the eye of Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Basic Leisure Authority. A suggestion was prolonged to convey him again to Riyadh Season later this yr.
Feelings ran excessive after the tip of the fourth spherical, when Bivol and Zinad went head-to-head. They leaned into each other earlier than ordered to go to their respective corners.
Bivol shook off a proper hand by Zinad within the fifth and remained on the right track with crisp combos. That stage of self-discipline allowed for a robust end.
A left hand to the chin started the fight-ending surge for Bivol, who rocked Zinad halfway by means of the sixth spherical. A sequence of proper fingers and left hooks rocked Zinad, who nonetheless had the wherewithal to taunt Bivol whereas pushed to the ropes. A remaining two-punch combo was sufficient to finish the battle.
The night time marked Bivol’s first to not go to the scorecards since a March 2018 12th spherical stoppage of Sullivan Barrera. Bivol earned 9 straight determination wins, together with a 12-round victory over Lyndon Arthur final Dec. 23 on this venue.
Saturday’s win marked Bivol’s twelfth with the complete WBA gentle heavyweight title at stake. He’s held the belt since a Nov. 2017 1st spherical knockout of Trent Broadhurst.
Now comes the chance so as to add the remainder of the divisional {hardware} to his assortment.
The Ring’s prime two gentle heavyweights—Beterbiev No. 1, Bivol No. 2—will now meet Oct. 12 in Riyadh. Alalshikh confirmed the date, initially reserved for the Oleksandr Usyk-Tyson Fury heavyweight championship rematch. It’s going to as an alternative crown the primary undisputed gentle heavyweight champion in additional than twenty years.
Beterbiev is the lineal, WBC, IBF and WBO champ.
Bivol-Zinad aired reside on DAZN Pay-Per-View. The battle was exterior to the present’s Queensberry vs. Matchroom 5-vs-5 match.
Jake Donovan is a senior author for The Ring and vice chairman of the Boxing Writers Affiliation of America.
Observe @JakeNDaBox
