The 35-year-old champion, 25-1 (12 KOs), had been out of the ring since evening the score with Artur Beterbiev in February last year via majority decision; the revenge was completed only four months after Beterbiev, arguably the only befitting rival of Bivol’s career thus far, technically speaking, had won their first encounter in a similar fashion. Bivol, back then, was rightly considered among the best fighters in the sport.
