Dmitry Bivol Stuns Canelo To Retain The WBA World Light-Heavyweight Title

Dmitry Bivol extinguished Canelo Alverez in a 12-round tussle.

Bivol was able to retain his world title with a score of 115-113, 115-113, 115-113. This is Alvarez’s first loss since 2013 against Floyd Mayweather.

The start of the fight created the mood for every fan as Bivol was heavily booed on his way to the ring. With the crowd behind Alvarez, it was expected that the Mexican would relish the occasion.

Those swings from @bivol_d 😤

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The first round saw the two fighters trying to visualize the weak points against each other. Bivol started stronger as he dominated most of the first round. In the second round, Bivol once again was the faster one out of the blocks.

The 31-year-old, like the first round, released the jab again. Alvarez tried to punch Bivol but both ended up with an accidental headbutt. Another two right hands from the Mexican and Bivol went onto the back foot.

In the third round, Canelo once again was able to execute his punches very well. He threw an uppercut that dismantled his opponent’s body completely. The Guadalajara native tried to corner Bivol, but the champion got out of trouble.

After a tough third round, Bivol tried to respond instantly. However, Canelo was calm and crashed his opponent’s face with a solid right hand. At the end of the fourth round, both the fighters’ faces were red.

At the start of the fifth round, the Mexican tried to corner the champion. After taking a few blows, Bivol took Canelo to the ropes before showing his punching skills. At the end of round 5, it was a question of whose will is greater.

With the crowd urging Canelo on, the Mexican threw in a one-two at the start of the sixth round. However, Bivol was resilient and threw in the jab after closing his guard. Alvarez started to panic as his punches were not able to find the target as he did in the first few rounds.

It is almost as if Bivol was getting better with time. In the eighth round, he threw a couple of three and four punches on Canelo, gave him a jab, and returned to the ropes again. The Mexican, like the crowd, was in dismay.

The time was running out for the Mexican, so he decided to go with the kill or die mentality in the ninth round. He threw in a handful of punches, but without any real strength to trouble the opponent. Bivol had already smelt victory by then.

He didn’t throw in a bag of punches in the 10th round but tried to make sure that Canelo chases after him. However, in the process, Alvarez is met with the right hand of his opponent. The champion was able to counterpunch efficiently.

It was desperate times for Canelo as he caught Bivol with a right hand.

In the final round, Canelo had visibly nothing left in the tank. As he would have known that he needed to win the last round to influence his chances of winning the world title, he wasn’t able to and that made Bivol the victor.