I faced Artur Beterbiev and was put on the canvas by Dmitry Bivol in defeat, but changed my mind on the winner.

Lyndon Arthur has made a U-turn on his prediction on Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol.

Beterbiev and Bivol were scheduled to face off in an undisputed title clash on June 1, but the showdown was postponed until October 12 after the former suffered an injury.

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The light heavyweight champions prove impossible to separate given this is an intriguing clash of styles between two undefeated fighters.

British contender Arthur, who fought Beterbiev several years ago and lost to Bivol in a WBA world title match in December last year, believes the former will emerge victorious.

He told talkSPORT.com: “Beterbiev hits hard, he would definitely be the one to hit the harder of the two.

“I believe Beterbiev wins now, I thought Bivol, but I believe Beterbiev wins now.”

Arthur was knocked out in his loss to the Russian champion, who outclassed him in a scintillating performance.

But the Brit survived the final bell where he was judged the loser on points, although he certainly showed courage.

He has since returned with a split decision victory over Liam Cameron and believes he has what it takes to return to world level.

This will be a high-stakes event at light heavyweight for Bivol and Beterbiev, who will look to make history and become the latest four-belt champion.

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The fight has been on the table for several years, but several clashes during negotiations have raised issues that previously derailed the confrontation.

This is a true 50-50 matchup, with the boxing world making different predictions in favor of the two fighters.

Bivol made a statement in a stoppage victory in a tune-up fight for Beterbiev, defeating Malik Zinad with a fiery display on June 1.

His promoter Eddie Hearn insisted he would continue to boost Bivol to defeat the powerful 39-year-old – despite his own incredible streak.

“I don’t really like him (Beterbiev) to be honest. I think he’s arrogant,” Hearn said.

“Rightly so, because he’s incredibly dangerous and he really believes in himself. But we’re here to talk about the fight.

“I really want to beat him, I thought Callum Smith was going to do the job and neither was Anthony Yarde, unfortunately.

“It shows how good Beterbiev is, but Bivol is special and it will be a tough fight for the undisputed world championship.”

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