Unified light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol is aiming for a return fight in March or April, casting his attention on his IBF mandatory challenger Michael Eifert.
Bivol manager Vadim Kornilov told BoxingScene Tuesday that his 35-year-old fighter, recovering from August back surgery, is expected to launch training soon in Kyrgyzstan.
Bivol 24-1 (12KOs) last fought in February 2025, defeating Russia’s then-undisputed champion Artur Beterbiev 21-1 (20KOs) in a compelling rematch. Bivol avenged his lone career defeat, four months after Beterbiev’s riveting majority decision victory in 2024.
While Bivol left Riyadh as the undisputed light heavyweight champion, he did not keep the WBC belt for long. The two-time champ vacated the WBC title, which was awarded to David Benavidez. Bivol still holds the WBA, IBF and WBO titles.
Germany’s Eifert 13-1 (5KOs) has been out of the ring even longer than Bivol. He has not fought since August 24, 2024, as he waited for his overdue mandatory title shot. The inactivity protected his No. 1 ranking, though he now faces a daunting task against one of the best fighters in the world.
Eifert’s most prominent victory was over an aged Jean Pascal in 2023, to become the IBF No. 1 contender.
Bivol was widely recognized by most outlets - including BoxingScene - as the 2022 Fighter of the Year. He defeated Saul “Canelo” Alvarez - who briefly moved up after becoming the undisputed super middleweight champion - and Gilberto “Zurdo” Ramirez, who is now a unified cruiserweight champion.
Lance Pugmire is BoxingScene’s senior U.S. writer and an assistant producer for ProBox TV. Pugmire has covered boxing since the early 2000s, first at the Los Angeles Times and then at The Athletic and USA Today. He won the Boxing Writers’ Association of America’s Nat Fleischer Award in 2022 for career excellence.
