SPORTS FACTS AND FIGURES 46: DMITRY BIVOL VS. ARTUR BETERBIEV ON FREE TV ON JUNE 1ST
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 17 Feb 2024
Bob Arum, CEO of Top Rank has announced the undisputed light heavyweight championship between Dmitry Bivol and Artur Beterbiev will be shown on free television on June 1, 2024 in the U.S. and Canada, courtesy of His Excellency Turki Alalshikh, Saudi Chairman for Sports. They will fight for the WBA, WBC, IBF & WBO light heavyweight world titles.
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Arum says the Bivol vs. Beterbiev fight would not be made possible without the support of the Saudi government because of the amount of money the fighters demanded. It will not be shown on PPV because it will not sell as both fighters are not household names with no multitude of boxing fans. WBA light heavyweight champion Bivol (22-0, 11 KOs) battles IBF/WBC/WBO champ Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) after all these years.
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“It’s happening on June 1st. It’s a terrific fight, and the only reason it was able to happen is because the Saudis financed it,” said Bob Arum to Fight Hub TV as quoted by Boxing News 24. "You couldn’t do it on PPV, but it’ll be put on June 1st in Riyadh. We’ve arranged with His Excellency that the fight will be distributed on free television on ESPN in the U.S. and Canada,” said Arum.
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“This is an example of a fight you couldn’t do in normal times because the fighters would want a lot of money for that fight, but how can the promoter get back the money he promises? It’s impossible.
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“As big of a fight as it [Bivol vs. Beterbiev] is, it’s not a PPV fight. You’ve got a Chechnyan guy [Beterbiev] who lives in Canada and a Russian [Bivol]. So, for a real die-in-the-wood boxing fan, it’s a tremendous attraction. But for the public at large, it’s an interesting fight, period,” said Arum.
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Dmitry Bivol is a Russian professional boxer who is the World Boxing Association (WBA) (Super version) light heavyweight champion since 2017 and the International Boxing Organization (IBO) titlist since December 2023.
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Artur Beterbiev is a Russian and Canadian professional boxer. He is a unified champion in the light-heavyweight division. He held the International Boxing Federation (IBF) title since 2017, the World Boxing Council (WBC) title since 2019, and the World Boxing Organization (WBO) title since 2022.
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NBA most free throws made in a game with no misses:
24 by James Harden, Houston Rockets (vs. San Antonio Spurs) on December 3, 2019. DeMar DeRozan made 24 consecutive free throws, then intentionally missed his 25th free throw on March 4, 2016.
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Sports History: February 18, 1986. San Antonio Spurs guard Alvin Robertson scored NBA's 2nd quadruple double-20 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists & 10 steals in 120-114 win over Phoenix Suns.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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