Dmitry Bivol’s mandatory title defence to not be on Usyk undercard.
Dmitry Bivol has been out of the ring since his undisputed championship triumph over Artur Beterbiev over a year ago. The light-heavyweight is the king of his weight class, and has been viewed as one of the very best pound-for-pound fighters in the world since his 2022 triumph over Canelo Álvarez.
That win came during Bivol’s reign as WBA world champion, a stretch of time that made up one of the longest-lasting title campaigns of the last few years.
One of the defences during that reign included a win over Gilberto Ramírez, when Bivol snapped the 44-fight unbeaten record of the Mexican who now stands as the unified cruiserweight champion.
Bivol possesses some of the sport’s most deft and sublime skills, which is why many have been frustrated with his recent inactivity.
However, this is not Bivol’s fault. A years-long back injury was recently operated on and forced Bivol out of action. But as it has now healed, he is ready to fight again.
Bivol’s return bout is set to be against IBF mandatory challenger Michael Eifert, a fight that had its purse bids postponed numerous times.
However, reports came out that it was set to be on the undercard of Oleksandr Usyk’s spectacle against kickboxer Rico Verhoeven, which may have been the greatest combination of pound-for-pound talent on a single card in years.
However, it has now been confirmed that while Bivol will be returning in May (the same month as the Usyk fight), his fight with Eifert will instead be its own headliner on an RCC Promotions card in Ekaterinburg, Russia.
An exact date and venue is yet to be announced.
Per sources, unified light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol’s IBF mandatory defense vs. Michael Eifert will not take place on the Usyk card in Egypt as had been in the works. Instead, it will topan RCC Promotions card in Ekaterinburg, Russia, in May on a date to be announced.…
— Dan Rafael (@DanRafael1) March 27, 2026
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