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Do all roads lead to David Benavidez for Dmitry Bivol?
Unified light heavyweight world champion Dmitry Bivol makes his highly anticipated return to the ring Saturday night, taking on mandatory challenger Michael Eifert in Yekaterinburg, Russia, and live on DAZN.
Owner of the WBA, IBF and WBO world titles at 175 pounds, Bivol is one fight away from being crowned a two-time undisputed ruler in the division. A showdown against undefeated WBC titleholder David Benavidez would grant him that opportunity.
Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn recently told BoxingScene.com that he’s already in talks with PBC to make a Bivol-Benavidez mega fight a reality.
The potential super clash carries distinct degrees of separation to Canelo Alvarez. After all, Bivol outpointed Alvarez by unanimous decision in their light heavyweight tilt back in May 2022, while Benavidez has been lobbying for a fight with the face of boxing to no avail for years.
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So, it would only make sense for Bivol and Benavidez — two former sparring partners — to converge.
For Bivol (24-1, 12 KOs), the fight would give him the chance to hand a feared boogeyman in Benavidez (32-0, 26 KOs) his first loss.
For ‘El Monstro,’ the bout would provide Benavidez the platform to do what Canelo couldn’t — defeat Bivol.
For this fight to take further shape, Bivol will first have to get past Eifert (13-1, 5 KOs) without suffering a hiccup after a long layoff. The unified light heavyweight king hasn’t fought since avenging his sole loss by defeating Artur Beterbiev via majority decision in their February 2025 rematch.
Meanwhile, Benavidez is coming off a sixth-round destruction of Gilberto ‘Zurdo’ Ramirez to snatch the WBA 'Super' and WBO cruiserweight world titles just earlier this month. For what it's worth, Bivol needed the distance to outpoint Ramirez in their November 2022 fight.
All being said, all roads leading to Bivol vs. Benavidez would be nothing short of a blockbuster, pairing one technically sound fighter against the destructive, relentless force of another.
Analysis: Who has the edge in Bivol vs. Benavidez?
DAZN News’ Mark Lelinwalla
For a potential Bivol vs. Benavidez fight, I’d give the early edge to Benavidez. During a late 2024 interview with him, Benavidez told me that he has sparred Bivol a lot, adding “I’m not saying he’s an easy fighter or none of that — I know what I can do with him.”
That’s a cool wave of confidence coming from Benavidez. His relentless pressure punching could systematically dismantle Bivol’s boxing ability toward another blast on ‘The Mexican Monster’s’ tear through the sport.
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