Athletistic/Boxing. WBC President Mauricio Suleiman has commented on his decision not to fight undefeated Russian boxer Dmitry Bivol due to his citizenship.
In particular, due to these sanctions, Bivol’s fight against Artur Beterbiev for the title of absolute light heavyweight world champion is impossible.
“At the moment, we cannot organize a fight with Bivol. It hurts me because I have a lot of friends in Russia – fighters, coaches, referees and even government officials. But there’s nothing personal here, we apologize if we hurt anyone’s feelings. Bivol is just a Russian, nothing personal. I have already said it several times. If Dmitry wants to fight, he has to prove he’s not Russian. How Beterbiev did it,” Suleiman said in an interview with Boxing Scene.
Artur Beterbiev holds his last fights under the flag of Canada.
Source: Sport

I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.