bivol vs beterbiev 2 card

LIVE: Beterbiev vs Bivol 2 – boxing light-heavyweight world title rematch

A big right hand by Ortiz Jr snakes round Madrimov’s guard.

But Madrimov comes forward more in the 11th, he’s not dancing anymore but he is landing – his heart has brought him back into this fight. He throws a lovely long left hook that just skims the nose of Ortiz Jr.

Ortiz Jr has his moments in the round though, sinking a brutal right into Madrimov’s midriff.

The final round – both need a big three minutes. They’re both letting their fists go now, they share a wild exchange.

Ortiz Jr hurts Madrimov, who holds on and tries to fire back himself. Both fighters showing huge courage and durability in there. Madrimov gets a last warning for using his head.

Both fire wildly in the last minute but neither can land a decisive blow before the final bell rings.

We go to the judges…

Before the ninth round, it was looking very tight out there but Ortiz Jr puts in a sensational round.

Ortiz Jr starts to work again, throwing stinging uppercuts and body shots, while Madrimov’s feet might be slowing.

A clubbing right hand hurts Madrimov and the Texan is looking more vicious.

Madrimov has definitely slowed under the relentless pressure from Ortiz Jr. Just before the bell, Ortiz Jr opens up with a combination to the body and the head, ending a right uppercut that snaps the Uzbek’s head back.

In the 10th round of this fight scheduled for 12, Madrimov tries to take the centre of the ring but Ortiz Jr is finding gaps as they fight toe-to-toe.

Madrimov gets a telling off for leading with his head. As the fight resumes, Ortiz Jr resumes thudding big body shots into Madrimov – he lands a big left, then he cycles through combinations, head to body to head.

Madrimov’s nose looks a little crushed, it might be broken – he ends the ninth throwing wild shots, his technique has slipped and it’s all a bit desperate from the Uzbek.

Madrimov is not backing up as much in round seven and he’s planting his feet more – he lands a nice left hook to the head after a feint to the body. The he throws a huge overhand right but it falls short.

Ortiz Jr is still blocking a lot of the shots Madrimov is firing off.

The Texan is still looking for the left hook to Madrimov’s body, but the Uzbek is wiser to it now, reading and blocking it more often.

In the eighth, Ortiz Jr renews the pressure, throwing a lot of jabs and one-twos but still leery of throwing combinations. Ortiz Jr is still catching a lot of Madrimov’s shots on his gloves.

Madrimov lands a big right while being backed into a corner. Ortiz Jr slows towards the end of the round and the Uzbek is back to dancing, as well as getting on the front foot himself.

Ortiz Jr continues to ease into his rhythm, landing a solid right body shot with Madrimov opting to stand and trade a little more.

Madrimov squeaks a right through Ortiz Jr’s tight guard to bloody his nose.

The intensity is increasing, Madrimov fires off pot shots with the right but Ortiz Jr lands a good right uppercut.

Both landing meatier shots now, Ortiz Jr looks for another uppercut just before the bell for round five but Madrimov blocks it.

In the sixth round, Madrimov is inviting a bit too much pressure and Ortiz Jr’s confidence is growing – he hurts Marimov with a left hook to the liver.

Madrimov’s mouth is hanging open as he tries to recover, and he gets a telling-off from the referee for a shoulder barge.

Ortiz Jr’s pressure is relentless, he’s increasingly trapping Madrimov on the ropes and finding chinks in his armour.

Ortiz Jr is still looking to walk down Madrimov, but remains wary.

Madrimob looks so relaxed in there, he’s slipping, leaning back, ducking, inviting a shot, evading it and landing lightning-quick punches of his own.

In the fourth round, Ortiz Jr is inching closer and letting his hands go more – he lands a couple of solid left hands, and then, just before the bell, connects with a lovely straight right.

Ortiz Jr, his guard high, immediately looks to try to walk down Madrimov, who dances around the edge of the ring with his hands loose and ready to fire from all angles.

Madrimove looks sharp and lands a few good counters. The bell for the first round goes with Ortiz Jr marked up under the left eye.

Ortiz Jr looks a little hesitant due to Madrimov’s power. Madrimov is a constantly moving target, elusive and hard to hit.

The second round ends with Ortiz Jr still not able to get going against a dancing Madrimov.

A lot of people think this could be one of the fights of the night. Ortiz Jr is undefeated, while Madrimov’s only loss was to the great Terence Crawford.

British heavyweight Daniel Dubois was set to defend his IBF world title against Joseph Parker on Saturday.

However, Dubois, who made a spectacular first defence of his belt against Anthony Joshua, withdrew from the fight on Thursday evening due to illness.

Congolese heavyweight Martin Bakole has been called in as a last-minute replacement.

Parker held the WBO title between 2016 and 2018 before losing a unanimous points decision to Joshua. The 32-year-old New Zealander upset former WBC champion Deontay Wilder last year before beating Zhilei Zhang to win the WBO interim title in March.

“To Daniel Dubois, I hope he gets better soon,” Parker said after weighing in at 267 pounds (121kg) on Friday. “To Martin Bakole, thank you for taking this fight on short notice. I’m looking forward to being in a ring with him tomorrow and going to work.”

Bakole chronicled his journey Friday on Instagram. He took a flight from Kinshasa to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

“One more flight,” he wrote before the next leg to the Saudi capital, where he was expected to land well past midnight local time.

“I can’t wait,” he said in a video post before the first flight. “I think I will shock the world tomorrow. A boxer is like a soldier, anytime they ask you to go to war, always be ready.”

Kabayel reasserted himself in that round and was thudding shots in Zhang’s body that proved decisive.

A solid stabbing right to the gut followed by a whipping left to the ribs sinks Zhang to his knees.

Zhang tries to get up amid the count, but he’s in agony and the referee waves it off at the count of 10.

Kabayel wins the vacant WBC interim heavyweight title in impressive style. Despite being knocked down in the fifth, the German put it on Zhang and became the first person to knock him out.

Next up, Vergil Ortiz Jr faces Israil Madrimov for Ortiz’s WBC world interim super welterweight title.

They’re setting a ferocious pace in rounds three and four, it’s not clear whether the 41-year-old Zhang can maintain this intensity.

Kabayel is standing his ground and landing some big shots on the inside on “Big Bang” – he’s nullifying Zhang’s long reach by getting close and frustrating the Chinese fighter.

The German has landed a useful right uppercut and left hook combination.

In the fifth round, Kabayel looks to be wearing down Zhang, attacking the body relentlessly.

Zhang looks spent, but out of nowhere, he lands a short left hook over Kabayel’s shoulder, a booming shot that sends Kabayel to the canvas.

Zhang’s hand speed is remarkable for such a big 41-year-old man!

Kabayel recovers and his feet look solid, but the round ends with him looking a lot more circumspect.

All to know about the Artur Beterbiev-Dmitry Bivol IBF, IBO, WBC and WBO World Light-Heavyweight title rematch.

Heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois withdraws from boxing bout with Joshua Parker in Saudi Arabia due to illness.

Mexican boxer Canelo Alvarez has dropped plans to fight Jake Paul by signing with Riyadh Season in Saudi Arabia.

Fury made the decision less than a month after his world heavyweight title defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in Riyadh.

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Ortiz Jr vs Madrimov goes the distance

Ortiz Jr may be pulling away

Madrimov ends eighth round looking buoyant

The momentum is with Ortiz Jr

Madrimov boxing beautifully but Ortiz Jr coming into it

Two rounds down in Ortiz Jr vs Madrimov

Vergil Ortiz Jr vs Israil Madrimov about to get under way

Why was Dubois replaced by Bakole for heavyweight fight clash against Parker?

Kabayel beats Zhang by stoppage in the sixth round!

Zhang knocks down Kabayel in the fifth

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Why isn’t Daniel Dubois fighting Joseph Parker and will they reschedule?

Parker will now box Martin Bakole tonight, after Dubois withdrew from his planned title defence

Daniel Dubois is no longer fighting Joseph Parker tonight, leaving the latter to box Martin Bakole on short notice in Saudi Arabia.

Dubois was due to defend the IBF heavyweight title against Parker, but the Briton’s participation in the bout came under doubt on Thursday (20 February).

• Beterbiev vs Bivol LIVE: Updates and undercard results

It was revealed that Dubois had fallen ill and was being “evaluated” by a doctor, as organisers sought possible replacements for the 27-year-old. After a press conference, at which it was confirmed Parker would stay on tonight’s card, Dubois was finally pulled from the event.

Martin Bakole was then named as Dubois’s surprising replacement. Bakole, 31, is often referred to as the “most-avoided” heavyweight in boxing, yet New Zealand’s Parker will fight the Congolese on just two days’ notice.

It is unclear whether Dubois vs Parker will be organised, but that outcome feels unlikely at this point. The current feeling within the sport is that 33-year-old Parker, should he beat Bakole, will get a shot at unified champion Oleksandr Usyk next.

With the WBO putting an interim title on the line in tonight’s heavyweight clash – and Usyk holding the regular WBO belt – the same opportunity should be handed to Bakole if he beats Parker, in theory. However, with Bakole having fewer wins than Parker at the elite level, some feel the Congolese should box Dubois next if he wins this evening, not fight Usyk.

Complicating the picture somewhat is Anthony Joshua, who lost to Dubois via knockout in September and has toyed with the idea of a rematch since. It was thought he might be waiting for the winner of Dubois vs Parker, although others felt Dubois or Parker should be guaranteed a shot at Usyk with a win this weekend.

Dubois fought Usyk in 2023 and lost via stoppage, although his promoter Frank Warren appealed the result, after Dubois landed a low blow that some believed was a legal body shot.

Parker enters his bout with Bakole on the back of five straight wins, including signatures victories over Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang. The Kiwi beat both on points, bullying Wilder in late 2023 and climbing off the canvas twice to defeat Zhang in March.

Meanwhile, Bakole upset Jared Anderson last time out, stopping the American prospect in five rounds in August.

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