Bivol-Smith Is Finally On. Now Let's See If Anybody Shows Up Rusty

After what felt like a summer's worth of "it's close," Dmitry Bivol vs. Callum Smith is official. The date is Dec. 12. The place is the UMMC Arena in Yekaterinburg, Russia. It's a Matchroom and RCC Boxing co-promotion, live on DAZN.

The WBO ordered this one as a mandatory, so give the sanctioning body credit for at least one thing this year. Bivol (25-1, 12 KOs) puts his unified titles on the line, the WBA, WBO and IBF world titles plus The Ring belt, per the official fight poster, against a Liverpudlian who's been waiting a long time for another real shot at 175.

Here's the thing nobody's going to say on the official poster: both of these guys have been inactive. Like, really inactive.

From boxbid.ioWalk Fight CityMake your own boxer, train in the gym and watch fights with fans. Go

Bivol beat Artur Beterbiev in their February 2025 rematch to become undisputed, then needed back surgery and spent a long stretch on the shelf. He came back once, against Michael Eifert in May, to take care of his IBF obligation. That's it. That's the whole résumé since he reached the top of the mountain.

Smith (31-2, 22 KOs) has it even worse. His last fight was that slugfest with Joshua Buatsi on the Bivol-Beterbiev 2 undercard in Riyadh, also in February 2025. He was supposed to fight David Morrell in April and pulled out hurt. By fight night, it'll be close to two years since he last threw a punch that counted.

So what are we really getting?

On paper, Bivol is the better fighter and he should be the favorite. He's the more complete boxer, he has the better feet, and he's already handled the man (Beterbiev) who stopped Smith in January 2024. Smith's two losses came against Canelo Alvarez and Beterbiev. No shame in either. But in both fights he looked like a very good fighter against a great one, and that's the box he has to climb out of here.

What Smith does have is size and a right hand. He was a legitimately big super middleweight who ran through George Groves to win the WBA title in 2018, and he's never been a guy who looks overmatched physically. If ring rust hits Bivol early and Smith gets him on the ropes, things get interesting.

From boxbid.ioGuess the PurseHow much did they get paid? The closest guess wins free points. Guess

And remember, he's fighting a Russian in Russia. Smith knows what he's walking into.

The bigger story might be what comes after. ESPN reports Bivol said on DAZN's "Inside the Ring" that David Benavidez, Canelo and Beterbiev are all on his wish list. A third Beterbiev fight is the obvious one, but Beterbiev hasn't fought since their rematch either and turns 42 in January. Benavidez has moved on to cruiserweight and has been publicly questioning why Bivol isn't taking big fights.

Bottom line: this isn't the fight anybody was screaming for, but it's a legit mandatory between a great fighter and a good one. If Bivol looks like his old self, the light heavyweight division gets its king back. If he doesn't, Callum Smith might cash the lottery ticket he's been holding since 2020.

Sources: Matchroom Boxing (Instagram, official poster), BoxingScene, ESPN, Boxing News, Bad Left Hook