Dmitry Bivol easily defends his WBA regular title for the third time
Former WBC light heavyweight champion Jean Pascal hoped to turn back the clock and possibly become a world champion again. However, hoping something and actually executing a game-plan to turn a hope into a reality are different things.
Many fans were uninterested in seeing the 36 year-old in a bout against an undefeated 27 year-old champion in who has cruised through every opponent he has faced. Dmitry Bivol had no problems showing why his opponent is no longer able to compete at the division’s elite level.
The Recap
The former champion tried to use every skill he possessed to get an edge in this bout. The problem was Bivol is much more skillful physically and mentally. From the start, the jab of the champion dictated the pace of the fight. Before he incorporated a murderous left hook to the body, he continuously backed Pascal up with the setup shot.
The former champion wanted to produce a heavy workload which would keep the younger fighter uncomfortable. However, Pascal would produce openings where the sharper Bivol could easily take advantage of through counter punching.
Realizing volume isn’t the right game-plan, the Canadian figured he could use unorthodox methods. For example, in round 5, he threw what looked like a double-punch with both hands as he lunged off the ropes. This only prompted the mentally superior champion to keep his composure and continue to dominate behind the jab-straight right combination to the head and body.
Next, Pascal figured he could swing for the fences and end up landing something big. Amazingly, this happened early in round 9, however, he wildly tried to capitalize on it. This only fatigued the 36 year-old and rendered him vulnerable to the killer body-shots Bivol began to deliver.
It didn’t matter what Pascal did, Bivol had an answer. Interestingly, the answers came without a need to make any adjustments to his original game-plan which showed how superior the champion was.
After 12 rounds, the Russian would win every round and capture a unanimous decision. In the post fight interview, Bivol made it clear he would fight anyone. He specifically stated:
“I will fight anyone my team tells me to fight. I will fight Alvarez, Kovalev, Badou Jack. Badou Jack if your tired of rest, lets make the fight!”
By: EJ Williams
