Beterbiev Returns
Groupe Yvon Michel has announced a major boxing event for June 4 at the Bell Centre in Montreal and while the entire card has yet to take shape, fight fans can look forward to seeing several stars of the GYM stable in action, including exciting light heavyweight power puncher Artur Beterbiev. Inactive since last June due to a shoulder injury, the former Olympian and amateur world champion is reportedly back in top condition and ready to resume his pro career. This is great news for those boxing fans who love exciting knockouts as Beterbiev put together quite an impressive streak of violent stoppages in a fairly short period of time. It will be fun to see him resume the carnage.
Starting in September of 2014, when Beterbiev, in just his sixth pro fight, demolished former champion Tavoris Cloud in three-and-a-half minutes, it’s been one stoppage win after another in front of large audiences on Showtime or Premier Boxing Champions. Jeff Page, Gabriel Campillo and Alexander Johnson all succumbed to Beterbiev’s awesome power and it would seem that the opponent announced for the transplanted Russian’s return will likely be just as accommodating. Ezequiel “El Olimpico” Maderna of Argentina is no slouch, but he’s also been campaigning at super-middleweight and likely doesn’t have the power to keep Beterbiev at bay.
Also appearing on the card will be fellow light heavyweight contender Eleider “Storm” Alvarez who is rumoured to be a future opponent for Adonis Stevenson, powerful heavyweight Oscar Rivas and prospects Sébastien Bouchard, Vislan Dalkhaev and Dario Bredicean.
“We will relaunch Artur’s career during Grand Prix weekend, the biggest sports weekend in Montreal,” commented the president of GYM, Yvon Michel. “Artur is the next star of boxing in Quebec. He was inactive due to a shoulder injury, but the surgery and recovery was successful and now we are planning three fights for him in 2016. Our goal is to eventually match him with world champion Sergey Kovalev by the end of this year or early in 2017.”
Our own Manny Montreal was on hand for the official announcement and got to speak with both Beterbiev and Yvon Michel. Check it out: