Exclusive: Marc Ramsay ‘Artur Beterbiev Is Back Training’

“He started this week with his boxing training, and it has been a little more intense,” Ramsay said in an exclusive interview for FightsATW. “The reaction we have is very good and we are very happy from what we have seen. Everything is going in the right direction. The surgery and all the physio work is done now. I believe we did the right thing to pull him out. It was a tough decision for us to cancel when we expected and wanted that fight for so long, but I think it was the right decision.”

The all-Russian light heavyweight kingmaker fight would have seen both men earn record-breaking money.

“It’s not a question about money,” Ramsay continued, “It’s a question about winning that bout and winning it at 100 percent. He had minor surgery on the left knee, but now everything is under control. They [Riyadh Season] have a plan to do the fight in October. This is what they told us. The time frame is good for us also. When we have spoken to our doctor and everything, it looks like that it will be very possible.”

Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs) would instead face off with little-known Libyan Malik Zinad, securing a sixth-round knockout victory as a stand-alone on the Queensberry Vs Matchroom card in the Saudi Arabian capital.

Beterbiev’s last appearance came in a title defense against Callum Smith in January at the Centre Videotron in Quebec City. The 39-year-old maintained his 100 percent knockout ratio with a seventh-round stoppage.