By Caryn A. Tate

This Saturday, October 12, unified light heavyweight world champion Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) faces the only other title holder in the division, Dmitry Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs). The winner of the contest will become the undisputed champion of the division—a rare achievement in modern boxing.

Beterbiev, who holds the IBF, WBC, and WBO world titles, has an unusual and impressive 100% knockout ratio. But even more impressive are his skills inside the ring. He possesses the unusual ability to box well on the outside and utilize angles and distance to do what he wants on the inside, even against taller and longer opponents.

I spoke with Beterbiev’s coach, former boxer John Scully, about Beterbiev and what Scully sees in his champion fighter.

Boxing Fundamentals

“I think people are starting to figure it out, but I was just telling someone the other day…in general terms, Artur is seen as Clubber Lang, you know, Mr. T in Rocky III. He’s a brute and just comes in and just destroys you.

“If you pay attention, this is far from the truth. Artur is so technical and he concentrates on distance and positioning and counter punching and all these things. When you see him do these things, they’re no accident. He’s planning these things out constantly. I’ve worked with a lot of guys, a lot of champions, and Artur is honestly the only guy I’ve ever seen who every single day is working on the most basic fundamentals, the most basic techniques. He works on them like it’s his first day in the gym. Like he just learned it yesterday.”

Inside Fighting

Beterbiev has an underrated and rare skill of fighting effectively on the inside, at close range, despite being a big puncher (as punchers typically need range and longer distance to get full extension on their shots). Plus, he hails originally from the Russian school of boxing where infighting is not typically emphasized.

“In the amateurs, Artur was under the Russian system which is basically like stand up straight and fight on the outside type of thing,” Scully said. “So he was never really a body puncher, and he was never really an inside fighter. So it’s been kind of a process. Slowly but surely, and he’s much better at it now. He’s improved every fight.

“I happened to mention to Mark (Ramsey, Beterbiev’s head coach), ‘He’s really getting his leverage super consistently now.’ You know, getting low, and he understands all that. So, yeah, I think his body punching and techniques on the inside have improved a great deal in the last three or four years.”

Scully discussed Beterbiev’s typical fight preparation, specifically the sparring, in more detail.

“A lot of guys (sparring partners) don’t necessarily want to be on the inside with him. So we just kind of let it play out and hopefully it (inside fighting) comes to fruition.

“Truth be told, his pressure is the type of thing where sooner or later he’s going to get you on the inside. That’s why we always have several sparring partners so that they can come in and out and not get worn down so easily.”

Discipline

Back in 2017 when Beterbiev fought Enrico Koelling for the IBF, his first world title, the fight went all the way to the 12th and final round before Beterbiev stopped Koelling.

Scully recalled, “Before the last round, I remember saying to whoever I was next to in the corner, kind of offhandedly, ‘Knowing Arthur, he’s probably going to stop him this round.’ After (the fight), we asked him and he just said kind of matter of factly, ‘You know, I just wanted to see if I could go 12.’”

Scully understands very well the importance of a fighter’s mental toughness and ability to focus no matter the circumstances.

“Artur is the type of guy who is so zoned in,” Scully said. “I’ll give you an example. When he got cut against Marcus Browne, it was a brutal headbutt and blood was all over his face. And the amazing thing is, at no time in the corner did he mention it at all. Most fighters are going to say, ‘Is it bad? Is it bad?’ He didn’t. He pretended that he didn’t even know he was cut.

“With most of my fighters, I’m dialed into their mentality and helping them strengthen it, but with Artur that’s not even an issue. He doesn’t need my help.

“Mentality is everything to me as a professional boxer. And he has it. He has the mentality where he’s never satisfied. He’s always trying to practice and learn. It’s kind of a funny thing, but he’ll say, ‘I want to be a good boxer one day.’

“He doesn’t see himself as this great fighter. He sees himself as a guy who’s just trying hard but still wants to get better. My gut feeling is that it’s intertwined with his religion to a degree–you couldn’t be a more devout Muslim than this guy.

“And I think it’s ingrained in him to keep trying to improve, keep trying to get better. You can never, never be complacent. You can never accept that you’re at your peak, that you’re at your best. You always have to strive to be better. That’s my gut feeling from him and his mentality.”