Another fight, another knockout?
That’s what fans have come to expect from Artur Beterbiev, the light heavyweight titleholder how has stopped all 16 of his opponents. We could see No. 17 on Friday in his adopted hometown of Montreal, where he’ll face Marcus Browne.
Beterbiev isn’t a one-punch knockout artist, although he has some quick KOs on resume. The two-time Olympian uses intelligent, but relentless pressure to break down his opponents before ultimately stopping them.
That’s what he did in his biggest victory, a 10th-round stoppage of previously unbeaten Oleksandr Gvozdyk to unify two titles in October 2019.
He followed that with another 10th round stoppage this past March over Adam Deines, a fight that was delayed after Beterbiev contracted the coronavirus. The fight on Friday will be his first fight since.
Few are eager to tangle with the 36-year-old Russian, as Browne (24-1, 16 KOs) acknowledges.
“Beterbiev is the most avoided champion out there,” Browne said. “He’s a great fighter, doesn’t make a lot of mistakes and is super strong. But I’m the better fighter and I’m here to show that come December 17.
“So, to my fans, know that I’m back and I’m here to stay. No controversial losses, no distractions, just straight work.”
Browne is no slouch. The 31-year-old American also was an Olympian, in 2012, meaning he is skillful. And while he doesn’t have the power of Beterbiev, he has heavy hands.
And he seems to be peaking. He had his break through victory in January 2019, when he defeated respected contender Badou Jack by a convincing unanimous decision. He followed that with a technical-decision loss in a close fight against Jean Pascal, the result of cut over Browne’s left eye, but bounced back to shut out Denis Grachev this past April.
Beterbiev could end up taking on fellow 175-titleholders Dmitry Bivol or Joe Smith Jr. And he has been mentioned as a possible opponent for Canelo Alvarez, against whom he’d earn a career-high payday.
However, he says his focus is on Friday night.
““It’s a good fight and good challenge for me,” Beterbiev RingTV.com. “He’s a very good boxer; good technically, good counter-puncher and very fast.”
He added, referring to potential showdowns with Bivol, Smith or Alvarez: ““I cannot think about this right now. Browne deserves all my attention and I will take care of other fighters later.”
If he wins.
“This is the moment in my life that I’ve been waiting for and I’m ready to take advantage of it,” Browne said. “I know exactly what I have to do to take the titles from Beterbiev and that’s what I’m going to do.
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