Dmitry Bivol’s 3 options for next fight revealed following Eifert win

Dmitry Bivol will have a big decision to make for his next fight after a successful return to the ring on Saturday.

Bivol was competing for the first time since February 2025 as he retained his unified light-heavyweight world titles against Michael Eifert, dropping the German on his way to a dominant unanimous decision victory.

Fans have already begun speculation over who Bivol will turn his attention to now, and promoter Eddie Hearn has revealed that the Russian’s next outing will likely come against one of three men.

Speaking to Matchroom Boxing, Hearn confirmed that it will be former foe Artur Beterbiev, WBC light heavyweight champion David Benavidez, or mandatory challenger Callum Smith next for Bivol.

“It was great to see him back. You saw him take his time in there, I feel like he probably could have got Eifert out of there, but great to bank the rounds after a very long period out with injury.

“Now he’s been ordered to fight Callum Smith. People are talking about Beterbiev 3 or Benavidez, but Callum has got to get his shot, so we’ll see what happens.

“We’ll speak to Dmitry and Vadim [Bivol’s manager] and the team. If he does choose to fight Beterbiev again or fight Benavidez then it will be Callum Smith against [Joshua] Buatsi to run it back for the world title, which would be a massive fight.

“It’s exciting times and Dmitry is now ready to jump straight back into the biggest fights in the sport.”

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A trilogy showdown between Bivol and Beterbiev has been discussed for some time, with the pair holding one win each over one another, and is the most likely option to land in Russia. It may not be the most intriguing, however.

A fight between Bivol and Benavidez has been much craved too, and would present the chance to crown another undisputed champion at 175lbs. ‘The Mexican Monster’ also has other options available to him, including a unification clash at cruiserweight.

As for Smith, he was named mandatory for Bivol’s WBO title earlier this month, but a clash against Buatsi for the vacant belt could be appealing to fans after the duo had a fight of the year contender last year, with Smith coming out on top.