Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol Odds, Pick & Prediction for Saturday, October 12

Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol Odds

Here's everything you need to know about the Dmitry Bivol vs. Artur Beterbiev odds for Saturday, October 12.

Insert mandatory lede about this being a Fight of the Year contender, because it is.

In boxing, we've been waiting for this bout since Dmitry Bivol outclassed Canelo Alvarez well over two years ago. And even by then, Artur Beterbiev had already been the class of the division.

Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) is the current WBA light heavyweight champion of the world, and he will face Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) – holder of the WBC, WBO, IBF and IBO titles – in a long-awaited superfight. The result will give us an undisputed light heavyweight champion for the first time in the four-belt area (which began formally in 2007) and the first undisputed champ in the class, in general, since Roy Jones Jr. in 2002.

There are few things better in boxing than boxer vs. puncher.

There is absolutely nothing better than the best fighting the best.

Bivol and Beterbiev are unequivocally that, and Saturday's main event will go overlooked in the West because neither is American. But if you've read even this far – keep going. This fight is worth the attention.

What more is there to say, honestly?

Oh yeah, the actual preview – let's do that.

Here's my Beterbiev vs. Bivol pick and prediction for Saturday afternoon's ESPN+ event in Saudi Arabia.

Beterbiev vs. Bivol Preview & Breakdown

Bivol is the boxer, and Beterbiev is the puncher.

Bivol deploys a "Soviet-style" of boxing that is heavily geared toward movement, activity, and punching from unsuspecting angles while heavily relying on the jab and being effective on the backfoot. It's technique-driven over power-driven, and ultimately, it's what stunned Alvarez and neutralized Gilberto Ramirez in a banner 2022 run, when Bivol was the Fighter of the Year for some.

Beterbiev is an educated boxer-puncher who is arguably the pound-for-pound best finisher and the most powerful and highest-level pressure fighter in the sport. He excels inside, he can drop opponents with a jab, and he stalks his prey more effectively than anyone you could name right now.

Bivol has never fought anyone like Beterbiev.

And Beterbiev has never fought anyone like Bivol.

Bivol, 33, is 6-foot-tall with a 72-inch reach. Nothing abnormal there. The Russian star most recently stopped an overmatched Malik Zinad in Round 6 in a title defense in June. It was Bivol's first stoppage victory since March of 2018 – which was 10 fights prior.

Bivol, as alluded to twice, was put on the map when – as a +450 underdog – he outboxed a smaller Alvarez, who moved up to light heavyweight to face, presumably, the weakest champion in the division. And boy was he surprised.

Bivol won unanimously on three cards of 115-113 each – and honestly, it wasn't as close as that suggests. Canelo won two, maybe three rounds in that fight.

Bivol originally won the interim WBA title in his seventh fight in May 2016. He was later promoted to champion over a year later. Bivol is 15-0 with five KOs in interim or full world title bouts.

Beterbiev won the IBF title in late 2017, and then unified the WBC in 2019 and the WBO in 2022. He's been "on the map" so to speak, for longer, despite him not winning a world title before his opponent.

The 39-year-old knockout artist from Canada (by way of Russia) may also have the better resume of opponents, though he doesn't have a Canelo or a Gilberto Ramirez, whom Bivol outpointed in late 2022. But Beterbiev has taken out a list of power punchers who were legitimate threats to his record and whom he made look inferior, including Oleksandr Gvozdyk, Lyndon Arthur, Joe Smith Jr., Marcus Browne and – most recently – Callum Smith in January.

Beterbiev is 9-0 with nine KOs in world title bouts.

Beterbiev vs. Bivol Pick & Prediction

For high profile fights, I try to stick to my initial thought and don't overthink. It generally works out, as was the case for Anthony Joshua vs. Daniel Dubois, or Canelo Alvarez vs. Edgar Berlanga, as recent examples.

I'm taking Bivol by decision, which is +120 at FanDuel at the time of this writing.

When it's boxer vs. puncher, I tend to favor the boxer. Because if the boxer is good enough defensively – which is implied by the style they bring – and could take a punch, they'll have more ways to win against their opponent. We've seen this in other high-profile fights, including in this same division, with Andre Ward beating Sergey Kovalev several years back.

To me, you either bet Bivol by decision or Beterbiev by stoppage, and I just think Bivol is more balanced and will be able to navigate the sustained pressure against his older opponent, who had this bout delayed for months due to meniscus surgery.

Enjoy the fight, and don't go broke!

Fonseca's Pick: Dmitry Bivol by decision (-120 at FanDuel)