Artur Beterbiev is finally coming into his own, his name in lights at Madison Square Garden.
The defence of his WBA and IBF titles in the unification match with WBO champion Joe Smith Jnr at the boxing’s old Mecca is a measure of his growing star power. Smith Jnr is immensely likeable and steeped in New York’s boxing traditions, going from Golden Gloves winner to world champion.
He never thought he would be good enough to grace Madison Square Garden in world title fight. He is living out is own fairy tale of New York. Sadly I don’t see a happy ending. Beterbiev is the most explosive light heavyweight in the division, a pulverising puncher.
Born in the fringe Russian state of Dagestan to Chechen parents, Beterbiev did all his amateur fighting for Russia, losing just five of his 300 bouts. Only Olympic gold eluded him, first in Beijing when he lost controversially to the eventual champion from China. Secondly to gold medallist Oleksandr Usyk in London, but that was at heavyweight.
He has won all 17 pro fights by stoppage. Though Callum Johnson dropped him in Chicago four years ago, Beterbiev got up and flattened him. He is physical freak, combining endurance with immense strength. He twirls a 20 kilo Olympic bar around his head like a tooth pick.
Smith Jnr is game as they come but not smart enough to trouble Beterbiev. He is neither elusive nor strong enough and lacks a plan B. I have made it plain in this column that Russians shouldn’t be fighting. Nothing against the boxers themselves. They are nice people, as are the majority of Russians.
But we have to make a stand somewhere as ordinary citizens and sport is one way to protest the invasion of Ukraine. Beterbiev is different. As a citizen of Montreal these past nine years and holder of a Canadian passport, he is not caught in the same trap as WBC champion Dimitry Bivol, who still lives in Russia.
Bivol showed his class in beating Canelo but Beterbiev is the more compelling. He is, however, 37 and as a consequence increasingly susceptible to the ageing process that nails us all in the end.
He is safe against Smith Jnr. Less so, perhaps, against the likes of Anthony Yarde, one of a crop of exciting Britons straining at the leash and, according to promotor Bob Arum, the next in line. Yarde will be ringside in New York sizing up the master ahead of a possible London date later this year. What a gift that would be, for us as much as him.
- Follow Barry on Twitter at @ClonesCyclone @McGuigans_Gym
