Teddy Atlas reveals his exact Beterbiev vs Bivol score after controversy: ‘I had him winning’

Artur Beterbiev beat Dmitry Bivol in a close fight to become the undisputed lightweight champion in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

The 39-year-old entered the ring with a 100% knockout ratio and would look to keep it alive by pinning his opponent. Bivol was elusive enough when he needed to be, but he didn’t run, earning Beterbiev’s respect with blistering combinations throughout.

In the end, both men proved why they are the best of a generation, making the full twelve each with a case for the win. The judges sided with Beterbiev, who took a majority decision with scores of 114-114, 115-113 and 116-112.

Many fans online were outraged by the result, including many top fighters, and felt that Bivol did more than enough to win. As with many close fights, there were a few “stealing” calls, including from Bivol’s promoter, Eddie Hearn.

Speaking on Fight Hub TV, celebrity trainer and analyst Teddy Atlas said he understood why the fight could have gone either way, but revealed that Beterbiev had won by one round.

“Close fight. A lot of close rounds. I can see why (people) are conflicted. You know what, I’m not going to judge anybody. I judged the fight, but I’m not going to judge anybody because I understand that it’s subjective in a way. There’s two ways to look at it, two fighters, close fight, a lot of close rounds.

I had it 115-113 Beterbiev, yeah, because I thought he was winning the championship rounds. I thought it was a very, very strong fight. I thought, as I often do, that a fight like this comes down to geography. Who gets the geography, the place in the ring, that suits their talents and strengths better than the other. Who gets to be the owner of this space, of those properties if you want, more than the other. In the end, I thought very close and light that Beterbiev did it.

The ancients would say this, make him fight your fight. In the end I thought he got Bivol, a game, a gallant warrior as they both were, to fight their fight. And how did he do it? He did it with pressure all night. Want to see what Beterbiev is? Go put a pot of boiling water on your stove and watch the water boil. Leave it for half an hour, it comes back that there is nothing in the pot. This is Beterbiev. Nothing seems to be happening, but something is happening. It’s making you seethe.”

As for the swing rounds, Atlas said the big-punching Beterbiev was doing enough to impress the judges in the final minute.

“(Bivol) threw one too many. Bang, he was caught. And then Beterbiev does what he does. What did he do in the end? Close the show. I don’t like using the term “rounders” because that cheapens what they both did. But (Beterbiev) was a couple of rounds late in closing the round strong.”

Both men have said they are open to a rematch.