Artur Beterbiev doesn't look past Dmitry Bivol

Artur Beterbiev is completely focused on his fight against Dmitry Bivol and is not interested in thinking about defending against WBC interim light heavyweight champion David Benavidez next.

IBF, WBC and WBO champion Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) has tunnel vision and is only thinking about his undisputed championship fight against WBA champion Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) on October 12 in Riyadh, Saudi- Arabia. Their fight will be broadcast live on DAZN PPV.

“We always train for different things in this fight and always try to be 100% ready,” Artur Beterbiev told Fight Hub TV when asked what he trained for to prepare for Dmitry Bivol’s different looks .

“I don’t think about people. I just have to think about my fight and that’s it,” Beterbiev said of his thoughts on fans seeing him as an underdog due to his age and recent injuries. “I feel young. I’m 39, but I’m young,” Beterbiev said.

Beterbeiv's last appearance against Callum Smith in January showed that he is still at the top of his game. The only thing we don't know is whether his recent leg injury will be a problem for him next Saturday night against the mobile Bivol. If it were a stationary fighter Beterbiev was fighting it wouldn't be such a big deal, but against a mover like Bivol it could be a bit of a problem.

“As long as everything goes well, I enjoy this work, this job. I can't say that. If there are no injuries, I will continue,” said Beterbiev about how much longer he sees himself fighting. “We always prepare for 12 rounds. We never prepare for four rounds or one round. We always prepare for the maximum,” said Beterbiev.

The injuries could be a problem for Beterbiev, who turns 40 in three months on January 21. Even if Beterbiev fights great, if he continues to suffer from injury problems, he could be left on the field for long periods of time, which will undermine his performance in the game.

“I never saw his fights because I’m not a big boxing fan. When I sign for a boxer, I only think about these things,” Beterbiev said when asked if he thinks David Benavidez has a tougher fight than Bivol. “I never observe every day (day to day).”

David Benavidez is waiting to face the winner of the Beterbiev vs. Bivol fight, and that is a match His Excellency Turki Alalshikh will wrestle next. The only thing that could stand in the way is if Beterbiev & Bivol have an immediate rematch or if the winner forfeits and moves up to cruiserweight.

That would be Benavidez's worst nightmare because he would be stuck fighting for the vacant WBC belt against the highest-ranked opponent available, in this case it would be No. 1-ranked Oleksandr Gvozdyk. He defeated him in a tough fight last June.