Following the injury suffered by Artur Beterbiev and his subsequent pullout, Bivol’s replacement opponent has been revealed. Bivol’s replacement opponent is Malik Zinad. This was announced by Turki Alalshikh on Twitter. The fight will still be on June 1st however will be a separate event from the Matchroom vs. Queensberry 5v5.
Despite this not being the fight we all hoped for, it’s better than Bivol not fighting at all. This fight serves to keep Bivol busy by not having him wait until Beterbiev is fully recovered. It also allows us to see how Bivol is looking in the lead-up to that undisputed showdown against Beterbiev.
Dmitry Bivol’s New Opponent
His opponent is Malik Zinad, a relatively obscure boxer from Libya who currently resides in Malta. He is undefeated in 22 fights with 16 of those wins coming by way of KO. This provides Bivol who on paper is a somewhat suitable replacement. The other top guys in the division such as Benavidez, Morrell, and Gvozdyk are busy. So this choice of opponent is quite justifiable.
However, this is very clearly a layup for Bivol. Bivol has vastly more experience and is easily more skilled. Bivol should be able to make easy work of this replacement. Especially considering that Bivol has been training for his most dangerous opponent ever in Beterbiev so he will be as sharp as ever. We will likely see an easy unanimous decision for Bivol where he cruises to victory outboxing Zinad. There is potential for an upset but that seems unlikely.
After this fight, Bivol’s next fight is likely Beterbiev depending on how long Beterbiev needs to recover. We could see the undisputed showdown before the end of this year again depending on Beterbiev’s recovery.
Are you interested in Malik Zinad as Dmitry Bivol’s replacement? Does Bivol vs. Beterbiev happen next? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
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