In 2015 Boxing News spoke to then rising light-heavyweight Artur Beterbiev
IT might just transpire that the worldโs finest light-heavyweight goes by neither the name of Kovalev, or Stevenson, and instead is a man who to date has had only eight professional fights.
The power with which Russiaโs newest wrecking ball punches, married with his natural boxing ability and indisputable, inherent spite, marks Artur Beterbievโs threat out like almost no other, even in boxingโs most destructive division.
Greater challenges than Jeff Page Jnr and Gabriel Campillo are required, but if those performances, Beterbievโs history of violence and the troubled environment that shaped him are to provide an indicator of his ability to challenge the 175lb world champions, it wonโt be for aggression or hunger he is found wanting.
Born in 1985 in Dagestan, a mountainous Russian region infamous for its anarchy and corruption, in which organised crime is said to flourish amid kidnappings and violence, firearms and assassinations, Beterbiev may not have been brought up in a permanent war zone but a dark, sinister threat was always present as he grew.
Even if that violence didnโt directly affect he and his family, the two Chechan wars, for independence from Russia, which claimed the lives of thousands and bled into Dagestan, unquestionably did. They created so many refugees that at one point the Beterbiev household, in the small city of Khasavyurt, swelled to 30, and ensured both insurgence, further violence and a military presence in the region thereafter.
It has been claimed Dagestan produces more elite boxers, amateur wrestlers and MMA fighters per capita than any other region in the world. Given the nature of Beterbievโs style โ brutal; ruthless; clinical โ it is difficult to think of a more appropriate grounding than the combination of domestic discontent and a culture in which street fighting was common; those in Dagestan remain among Russiaโs poorest today.
A young Beterbiev, who from the age of โeight, nine or 10 years oldโ earned a negligible wage at a local petrol garage where he worked filling cars, had the same lust for street-fighting as many others of his generation. It was only his brothersโ intervention that took him to a boxing gym, beginning the honing of a strength and skillset that have made him among the most dangerous and feared fighters on the planet, the latest symbol of the growing power of the East.
โI donโt remember everything because I was a young kid, but the memories arenโt good,โ Beterbiev told Boxing News. โWe used to adopt refugees from Chechnya, sometimes 30 people were [living] in our house. It wasnโt a small house, but it wasnโt like a hotel.
โOf course Iโm worried about [the region today]. I still have some family there. Itโs just sad that itโs happening, but itโs not bad like it used to be before.
โI was a troubled kid. I always used to fight at school, in the streets. If there was a street tournament Iโd fight outside there. I was an angry kid, and it was a tough childhood. I had my principles. If it didnโt work my way I would start to fight.
โIt was normal. Everybody in that region used to fight between each other. We had lots of free time, itโs what we used to do.
โI started boxing at 10, 11 years old. Because I was always fighting in the streets my brothers decided to bring me to a boxing class, and a wrestling class. I used to do both. I was raised by my brothers. To me, theyโre like fathers.
โI was kicked out from the wrestling school but I never came back. I was kicked out of the boxing school but I always came back, and asked if I could continue to train. [I was thrown out because] I always used to fight when I wasnโt supposed to.
โItโs like a school for us. We didnโt have many other sports, weโd maybe play soccer. Weโd go to school for one half of the day, and go to the gym the other half of the day. Since the age of five, six, seven years old, parents send kids to boxing, wrestling or MMA classes. Itโs just tradition there, like 80 per cent of the kids are going to either boxing or wrestling. I knew right away it was for me.โ
It took Beterbiev only six months to win his first local junior championship and begin the largely-upward trajectory that took him from wild, youthful street fighter to an amateur of almost the very highest calibre. Winning silver at the 2007 World Championships and gold two years later and becoming the 2006 and 2010 European champion, the Russian also twice defeated outstanding compatriot Sergey Kovalev, todayโs WBA Super, IBF and WBO light-heavyweight king.
Further fine victories over Michael Hunter Jnr, Abbos Atoev and Evgeny Makarenko, coupled with the stoppages of Ismayl Sillakh and Siju Shabazz, enhanced Beterbievโs reputation as a fighter truly capable of earning parity with the eraโs amateur greats, but his ultimate goal, of becoming an Olympic champion having reached Beijing 2008 and London 2012, eluded.
โItโs the peak of an amateur boxing career, to win at the Olympic Games, so it was my dream, I was always chasing to be the best in the world,โ said Beterbiev, who spoke toBN via interpreter Dokk Dudayev. โIt was very hard for me, mentally [not to win at the Olympics]. It took a lot of time to recover mentally and to decide what to do next.
โI wanted to become a professional boxer a long time ago, but me and my family all wanted for me to participate and win the Olympic Games so I had to postpone my professional career. But if it wasnโt for that I would have become a pro boxer after the first Olympics [at Beijing, in 2008].
โIt wasnโt really a rivalry with Kovalev. Actually, the rivalry was with [Russian captain] Evgeny Makarenko. I had a plan to beat him. I was following my plan, and Kovalev โ we fought, yes โ but he wasnโt something important, just another fight. Makarenko was number one back then.โ
Complementing his aggression, other signs of Beterbievโs difficult former environment remain โ โthe most important thing I got from my amateur career was the discipline, Iโm disciplined by myself; I never missed training, even if Iโm sick, and Iโm still doing thatโ โ and, though the collapse of his amateur ambitions can be a burden, through it his urgency for professional progress became a strength.
Despite just 15 months and 11 rounds over five successful paid fights, Beterbievโs promoter Yvon Michel matched the Russian with Tavoris Cloud, the seasoned former IBF champion who had contested a world title in his previous seven. Only Bernard Hopkins and WBC champion Adonis Stevenson had previously beaten the American also known as โThunderโ, yet Beterbiev dismantled him in less than two rounds, effectively forcing him to quit after four knockdowns as merciless as they were swift.
โI used to fight the same style when I was amateur,โ says Beterbiev, who left Dagestan to study physical education in Moscow for eight years from the age of 17 and similarly has relocated to Montreal, where he is trained by Marc Ramsay, to pursue his professional potential.
โI like to show a nice fight to the fans, and Iโm just adjusting some little stuff when I came pro from an amateur, but this was always my style. I was always the aggressor, but only in the ring.
โWhen Iโm in the ring Iโm quite nasty. Until I get my hand raised and know that Iโve won, Iโm savage. In Russia, we call it โsports madness, sports aggressionโ. But itโs nothing personal, itโs just the way to win.โ
Regardless of his intentions, the boxing world unquestionably took notice. The previously undefeated Page Jnr, also in less than two rounds, and Spainโs former WBA champion Campillo, in less than four, similarly followed; Franceโs Doudou Ngumbu is next on June 12 and can provide another sign of Beterbievโs rapid progress if a victory can surpass the unanimous decision won by Andrzej Fonfara, against Ngumbu in November, over 10 rounds.
Given the expectation that Beterbievโs development will continue โ and the punishment that is becoming routine for his opponents may yet take worthwhile learning fights out of his 73-inch reach โ the 30 year oldโs matchmaking may soon be accelerated further beyond its present fast-track pace, specifically to the third fight of a trilogy with Kovalev, or to Stevenson.
โ[Stevensonโs] a good boxer, he deserves some respect,โ said Beterbiev, like many from Dagestan a devout Muslim, who also told BN he was praying when it appeared he was talking to himself immediately after the stoppage of Campillo.
โIโm just going to keep doing what Iโm good at. For me, itโs not personal. Either itโs gonna be Stevenson, or Kovalev. Iโm not chasing after anyone, Iโm chasing after the belts. Iโll deserve my title shot, whoever it is I donโt care. Itโs not for me to judge, I havenโt even seen [Stevensonโs] last fight.
โI havenโt really followed Kovalevโs career. The last fight, with [Jean] Pascal, I was there, and heโs good, heโs improved, heโs winning. By his winning record, and his belts, you can say that heโs improved [since we fought as amateurs].
โI think Kovalevโs a good fighter. Me and him have a history. I donโt want to say now, or tomorrow, or this year, or next year, but weโre definitely going to meet each other in the ring. Just a matter of time.
โIโm pretty sure definitely, one day, weโll meet each other.โ