SEIYA Tsutsumi is the fresh WBA bantamweight champion after defeating Takuma Inoue by unanimous decision at Ariake Arena. The judges gave different point totals, ranging from 117-110 to 114-113 with a roll of 115-112. Whatever conclusions they reached, the right fighter agreed in a fight that included chops, questionable knockdowns and furious exchanges.

Inoue looked better when he occupied the middle ring and relied on his left jab and upper body movement to sustain him. Unfortunately for his younger brother, Naoya was faced with an opponent who set a high pace and was able to maintain it from the first bell to the last.

Tsutsumi briefly stopped his aggressive play and took a compact walk delayed in the third period when Inoue delivered a demanding uppercut to put him back on the leash. However, this pitbull could not be tamed so easily. Things calmed down until the fifth, which escalated into a bar fight as Tsutsumi continued to apply frantic pressure.

The main question was: would Tsutsumi be able to maintain such a constant pace? The answer was yes, he could and he did. Inoue even suffered a knockdown in the 10th round when he used the ropes for leverage.

With a record of 12-0-2 (8 KO), Tsutsumi suffered a minor cut to his left eye. The defeated Takuma Inoue currently has a record of 20-2 (5 KO) and has just faced a fighter so determined that he cannot be denied.

“I have dedicated my entire life to this moment,” said an emotional Tsutsumi after 12 rounds of tremendous effort.

“Every round my coach, friends and family kept cheering me up and I had to do it [round] at a time, one at a time. I am very grateful and respectful [Inoue] the most. It seems surreal to me and I can’t believe it now.

The interviewer later made an engaging point by revealing that Tsutsumi was born in 1995, the “golden age” of the bantamweight champion, as he became the seventh Japanese fighter born that year to win a world title.

Potential future opponents for the fresh king include WBO bantamweight titleholder Yoshiki Takei, who won the belt from Jason Moloney and was last seen defeating Daigo Higa in September.

Artur Beterbiev won the undisputed featherlight heavyweight championship with a majority decision victory over Dmitry Bivol on Saturday at the Kingdom Arena in Riyad, Saudi Arabia.

Beterbiev closed the fight of Russian boxers strongly and won with scores of 115-113, 116-112 and 114-114 in an invigorating fight fought at the highest level.

With his victory in the long-awaited summit meeting, Beterbiev became boxing’s first undisputed 175-pound champion in the four-belt era. Bivol entered the fight rated No. 1 by ESPN in the featherlight heavyweight division and No. 4 pound-for-pound. Beterbiev was No. 2 in the league and No. 6 pound-for-pound.

“Of course it’s a tough fight because Dmitri is also a champion,” Beterbiev said. “He has good skills, maybe better than me. But today Allah has chosen me.”

Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KO) entered the fight as the only boxing champion with a 100% KO rate, and the streak ended on Saturday with the biggest victory in his prosperous career.

Beterbiev will turn 40 in January and is undergoing knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus that postponed the June fight. However, in the second half of the fight, he was still able to rally and establish himself as a Hall of Fame fighter.

Bivol (23-1, 12 KO) controlled the action throughout the first half, especially early on as he unleashed his excellent jab and footwork to keep a mighty punch at bay.

Bivol was the cleaner and sharper puncher and did well to counter Beterbiev with a left hook after his famed powerful jab. But Beterbiev never stopped coming. Even when his punches were blocked – and most of them were – they seemed to still have an effect on Bivol’s high guard.

The 33-year-old Bivol entered the fight with an advantage in experience in major fights following his career-best victory over top boxing star Canelo Alvarez in May 2022. But it was Beterbiev who rolled through the final three rounds to claim the victory.

“I did what I had to do,” Bivol said. “I felt I could do better. … He is powerful, very powerful.

“And you see I have a bruise on my hand,” he said, raising his hand to his eye. “He always beat it and it was so strenuous that it even came up to my eye.”

Bivol emerged with his left eye badly bruised and swollen, and he also had marks around his right eye.

“I am aware that I have to do everything perfectly and I don’t have any explanation because it might seem like an excuse,” Bivol said. “I just [give] Congratulations to Artur and his team. He deserved it, no problem. I just have time to make another decision about my future.”

The fight clearly needed a rematch, and many observers and fans scored for Bivol. Demand should also be high, given the drama of the competition and the lack of a clear winner.

Bivol’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, expressed anger at the outcome of the fight, especially the 116-112 score in Beterbiev’s favor.

“Listen, I don’t want to be disrespectful to Beterbiev,” Hearn said. “But you saw the body language, they knew they had lost the fight. 116-112 Beterbiev? You gave Bivol four rounds? It’s a joke. Of course [we want a rematch]was robbed of an undisputed championship tonight. I can’t believe you could give Bivol four rounds. …It’s absolutely disgusting. I am completely surprised and disgusted by the result of 116-112.”

Bivol said he “of course” wants another chance at Beterbiev: “Why not?… If I get that chance, then yes. My dream is to be undisputed.”

But it was Beterbiev who fulfilled his dream of winning all four belts, adding Bivol’s WBA title to his IBF, WBC and WBO titles.

“I wanted to box with more quality today,” Beterbiev said. “I don’t know why, but I didn’t like this fight. But one day I will be better. …If His Excellency [Turki Alalshikh] I want [the rematch]then we can do it.”

Promoter Eddie Hearn was furious when he saw Dmitry Bivol lose what he considered a questionable 12-round majority decision to Artur Beterbiev on Saturday night in Riyad.

What really angered Hearn was the judge’s score of 8-4 for Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KO), which he felt did not reflect what happened in the ring.

Hearn score 8-4 for Bivol

Hearn says Bivol (23-1, 12 KO) gave him an 8-4 victory, which fans said was even worse than the one he gave Beterbiev. The way Bivol folded in the second half of the contest means he cannot be considered deserving of the 8-4 score that Hearn gave him.

With all the movement Bivol was using, he still broke under Beterbiev’s pressure in rounds 8 through 12. Bivol moved constantly. What would happen if Biwol decided to stand up and fight Beterbiev? This is something Hearn doesn’t mention because he would have to face a bigger truth.

On Saturday night, Bivol lost the WBA title to IBF, WBC and WBO featherlight heavyweight champion Beterbiev, who is now the undisputed four-belt champion after defeating him at the Kingdom Arena.

Results

– 114-114
– 115-113
– 116-112

“Eddie Hearn always talks bad about me,” said Artur Beterbiev iFL Televisionin reaction to the information that Eddie Hearn is not satisfied with the results after his victory over Dmitry Bivol. “Yes, I think so,” Beterbiev replied when asked if he wanted a rematch with Bivol after being told that His Excellency Turki Alalshikh wanted a rematch.

“Maybe because the third guy I beat him. Maybe that’s why he always complains about me,” Beterbiev said about beating fellow Hearn fighter.

Hearn is concerned that Beterbiev beat another of his fighters, but that is much harder to swallow because the defeat hurt Bivol’s chances of fighting Canelo Alvarez again. This fight would be a hit.

“He’s a lot more humble than me because when you work your whole life and get results like that, it’s not fair to take that away from you,” Eddie Hearn told iFL TV about his player Bivol.

“I was 8-4, 7-5 [for Bivol]but for someone to score 116-114 in this fight, you give Dmitry Bivol four rounds in this fight. This referee should never work again,” Hearn continued. “It’s a shame that during the biggest fight and on the biggest stage, this happens.

“He [Bivol] I won’t say it, but I will. Without a doubt, he should be the undisputed champion today,” Hearn said.

The judges decided that Beterbiev was the better player and made the right choice. Bivol was tired and couldn’t fight challenging enough later in the fight when he had to be aggressive.

“He hits challenging, but not like people describe,” Bivol said when asked about Beterbiev’s strength, Bivol said. “Yes, it’s challenging. Look at my eye. He punched my left arm multiple times and you can see my bruises. Yes, it is mighty, but we can withstand these mighty blows.

“His Excellency said: ‘Bad decision. We’ll do a rematch,” Hearn said. “We keep our fingers crossed, he keeps his word. I have a supple spot for him. He’s an amazing athlete. The way he takes this defeat is so much better than me, but that’s just the way he is. Respect to both players. This man should be the undisputed champion today.”

Bivol withered

The final word belonged to the judges, who felt that Bivol had not done enough to win the competition. If Bivol had not lost his nerve and become timid in the last five rounds, he could have won. He spent rounds 8 to 12 running, trying not to get beaten and give up. If Bivol had shown courage, he would have been knocked out because he was withering even though he was running.