Getty
PHILADELPHIA, UNITED STATES – OCTOBER 19, 2019: Artur Beterbiev of Russia poses with the IBF and WBC belts as he celebrates victory in a light heavyweight IBF-WBC world title unification boxing fight against Oleksandr Gvozdyk of Ukraine (not pictured) at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Valery Sharifulin/TASS (Photo by Valery SharifulinTASS via Getty Images)
Getty
PHILADELPHIA, UNITED STATES – OCTOBER 19, 2019: Artur Beterbiev of Russia poses with the IBF and WBC belts as he celebrates victory in a light heavyweight IBF-WBC world title unification boxing fight against Oleksandr Gvozdyk of Ukraine (not pictured) at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Valery Sharifulin/TASS (Photo by Valery SharifulinTASS via Getty Images)
The WBC and IBF light-heavyweight king of boxing, Artur Beterbiev, has been forced out of his title defense fight against Adam Deines after testing positive for COVID-19. This is the second time that this highly awaited fight has been postponed.
The duo were originally supposed to battle in October, but a rib-injury forced the champion out.
Watch What’s Trending Now!
Unfortunately, the future of this battle still looks uncertain.
🚨 JUST ANNOUNCED 🥊
Following a positive COVID-19 test, #BeterbievDeines will no longer take place Jan. 30 on ESPN+. More updates on the Light Heavyweight king's return to come soon. pic.twitter.com/KUhG1cLt35
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) December 28, 2020
Top-Rank Boxing posted the sad news on their official social media handles.
This was the only relevant fight in the current landscape of the 175-pound division. If the duo had fought, it would have been for the light-heavyweight title unification. Beterbiev was initially set to fight Meng Fanlong in March this year, but the fight was scrapped because of the pandemic.
The Russian boxer, Artur Beterbiev, is undefeated in his professional boxing run. He desperately needed a win to continue his elite run in the light heavyweight division.
On the flip side, his opponent, Adam Deines, hasn’t fought for more than a year. He made his way towards the light-heavyweight title-shot but got denied due to some uncertainties.
Read – Ben Askren Doesn’t Think Fight With ‘Coward’ Jake Paul Will Happen
Artur Beterbiev vs Adam Deines to get rescheduled?
Beterbiev vs Deines is a highly awaited battle that will shape the light-heavyweight division’s future. The WBO and The Ring belts of this division are vacant, and this fight could have awarded the winner with both.
He fought 15 times in his pro-boxing career and finished all his opponents via T/KO. His opponent, Deines, is a fierce contender in the division with a 19-1 run in professional boxing. He was coming off a sensational KO win over Yevgeni Makhteienko last year.
This will be an epic clash that will cater to the 175-pound division. Considering the hype behind this fight, it’s possible that the battle will be rescheduled to an appropriate date.
Read – Roy Jones Jr. Recounts Almost Quitting Boxing After Being Robbed of an Olympic Gold Medal
Who would you root for in this fight?
