Dmitry Bivol has officially vacated the WBC light heavyweight title and will instead proceed with a trilogy fight against Artur Beterbiev, according to a formal notice submitted to the sanctioning body. The move ends the prospect of a bout between Bivol and WBC interim titlist David Benavidez, who had been pushing for a purse bid hearing scheduled to take place on April 8 in Mexico City.
Bivol informed the WBC that he is contractually and personally committed to facing Beterbiev for a third time, rather than meeting Benavidez in what would have been his first official defense of the WBC belt. Beterbiev won their first encounter via majority decision, while Bivol claimed revenge in their February rematch, also by majority decision, handing Beterbiev his first professional defeat. Both fights took place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with the rubber match expected to land there again later this year, possibly in October at the start of the annual Riyadh Season.
Since Bivol is stepping away from the mandatory defense against Benavidez, the WBC will install Benavidez as its full titleholder. Benavidez had been the interim champion since defeating former lineal champion Oleksandr Gvozdyk last June, and later added the secondary WBA “regular” belt by outpointing unbeaten David Morrell this past February. The WBC had imposed a condition that the winner of the Beterbiev-Bivol rematch would fight Benavidez next, but those plans became complicated when Bivol and his team insisted on fulfilling prior obligations, including a third clash with Beterbiev and an overdue mandatory for the IBF.
Benavidez and his management team had also sought to modify a potential purse split for the Bivol fight, initially requesting 55-45 in their favor and ultimately receiving a verbal agreement from the WBC to 60-40. However, those efforts became moot once it became clear that Bivol would not commit to the bout. In the letter relinquishing the belt, Bivol’s counsel cited the IBF’s rotation system and Bivol’s existing agreement with Beterbiev as the main reasons for opting out of the WBC-ordered defense.
The IBF now looms as another piece in the puzzle, given that Germany’s Michael Eifert has long been awaiting his mandatory shot. When Beterbiev defeated Bivol in their first fight to become the unified champion, the IBF had ordered Beterbiev to defend against Eifert but later granted a special permit for the Bivol rematch. The latest developments could see the IBF reassert that mandatory position, possibly leaving the trilogy fight in need of further negotiation if either belt is at risk of being vacated.