The IBF and WBC unified light heavyweight world champ Artur Beterbiev relocated to Montreal nearly a decade ago to start his professional career after gaining a couple of Olympic berths for his nation Russia. After more than 15 matches in his career, he will go back to his adopted hometown as a world champion for the first time. Beterbiev is the only world champion in boxing with a complete knockout rate. He will defend his world championship belts against the top WBC contender and former US Olympian Marcus Browne at the Bell Center in Montreal on Friday, December 17, in the Marcus Browne vs. Artur Beterbiev fight. The fight will be the main event in a night that will see a world title tripleheader and streamed live and exclusive on ESPN+ in the United States.
The tripleheader will also have Marie Eve Dicaire and Kim Clavel go for world championship belts against undecided opponents. The press release said that Marie is challenging for her former IBF super welterweight belt, which she lost to Claressa Shields earlier this year. Kim is going to fight for the WBC light flyweight title. Yesenia Gomez has that belt right now. But she has already got a match scheduled for this week. So, it is not clear whether the match will be against her or the interim champion Kenia Enriquez.
Beterbiev is termed as the most cursed man on Earth. He got back in the ring this year with a convincing beatdown of Adam Deines. The IBF mandatory challenger Meng Fanlong is missing in action. So, he will instead go against WBC mandatory Browne. Many fans are questioning why Browne is the mandatory challenger after only a one-fight winning streak. Top Rank chairman Bob Arum said, "Artur Beterbiev has built a tremendous fanbase in Montreal, and we wanted to allow him to defend his titles in his adopted hometown. Marcus Browne is a worthy mandatory challenger, a big southpaw with a high boxing IQ. But I believe Artur is the world's premier light heavyweight and, as usual, will end the fight before the final bell."
Marcus Browne vs. Artur Beterbiev Fight Details
Beterbiev's last fight in Canada was nearly five years ago. He got a stoppage victory over Isidro Ranoni Prieto in the initial rounds. He got the vacant IBF world championship belt in his next match, which he defended a couple of times before unifying the belts with a great stoppage victory over longtime WBC champ Oleksandr Gvozdyk. After an absence of nearly one-and-a-half years, he returned this year with a knockout win over Adam Deines in Moscow. He said, "I want to thank Bob Arum and Yvon Michel for bringing this event to Montreal. It has been my dream to defend my titles before the fans who have supported me my entire pro career. I look forward to defending my titles.”
Browne is a native of Staten Island, New York. Two years ago, he got an interim world title with a unanimous decision victory over multiple-weight world champ Badou Jack. After getting a defeat due to a technical decision to Jean Pascal a couple of years ago, Browne got back to his winning ways with a shutout decision win over Denis Grachev. Browne said, "This is the moment in my life that I have been waiting for, and I am ready to take advantage of it. I know exactly what I have to do to take the titles from Beterbiev, and that is what I am going to do. Beterbiev is the most avoided champion out there. He is a great fighter, does not make many mistakes, and is super strong. But I am the better fighter, and I am here to show that come December 17. So, to my fans, know that I am back and I am here to stay. No controversial losses, no distractions, just straight work."
Marcus Browne vs. Artur Beterbiev Fight: Purse Bid
A purse bid was held for the Marcus Browne vs. Artur Beterbiev fight for the light heavyweight title. The bid was won by Top Rank, which is the promoter of Beterbiev. The Las Vegas-based firm submitted the winning bid of more than one million dollars for the rights to promote the WBC light heavyweight championship match. TGB Promotions gave the only other bid on behalf of Premier Boxing Champions, which promotes Browne. Their bid also crossed a million dollars. Top Rank also has an exclusive broadcast deal with ESPN. It now has the right to ensure when and where the mandatory championship match will take place. The purse split has been done in favor of the champion.
This means that the IBF and WBC unified titleholder Beterbiev of Montreal will get more than $700,000 for his championship defense. In contrast, Browne of Staten Island, New York, will get over $300,000 for his initial shot at a major world championship. Beterbiev is coming fresh from a stoppage win over Adam Deines this year in Moscow, Russia. Browne is a former US Olympian and won against Denis Grachev by a shutout unanimous decision earlier this year. It was his first match since his only loss, a technical decision defeat against Jean Pascal a few years ago. He was dropped a couple of times and had a severe cut because of an accidental headbutt.
Yvon Michel, GYM President, said, "It is with great pride that we are going to offer this wonderful Christmas gift to Quebecers! Artur Beterbiev is probably the best boxer in the history of Canadian boxing, and it is a privilege to have him with us in this defense of his two world titles. In addition, we will make this event a historical one, as we have three world championship fights on the bill. Marie-Eve Dicaire is determined to regain her title. The charismatic Kim Clavel sets out to win the WBC light flyweight crown. December 17 is one of the biggest international boxing events ever presented in Canada, a real bright spot after all these months of the pandemic. I want to thank Artur Beterbiev, Bob Arum, and Top Rank for their trust."
Marcus Browne vs. Artur Beterbiev Fight Statistics
Marcus Browne vs. Artur Beterbiev Fight Card
Here is the full fight card of the evening. The rest of the matches will see the rivals being declared at a later stage.