Bivol vs Chilemba

Who won Bivol vs Chilemba?

Dmitry Bivol beat Isaac Chilemba by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest on Saturday, August 4th, 2018, at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, New Jersey.

The scorecards were announced as 120-108, 120-108, 116-112 in favor of winner Dmitry Bivol.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 12 rounds in the Light Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 175 pounds (12.5 stone or 79.4 kg).

This contest was for the WBA light heavyweight championship of the world.

Bivol was defending his his The Ring Light Heavyweight Championship for the first time. He won this belt against Artur Beterbiev in February 2025. He had held this belt for 4 months and 20 days.

He was also defending IBF World Light Heavyweight Championship for the first time. He won this belt against Artur Beterbiev in February 2025. He had held this title for 4 months and 20 days.

Also, on the line was his WBO World Light heavyweight Championship defense for the first time. He won this belt against Artur Beterbiev in February 2025. He had been recognised as this champion for 4 months and 20 days.

Finally, he was defending WBA Super World Light Heavyweight Championship for the first time. He won this belt against Artur Beterbiev in February 2025. He had been WBA champion for 4 months and 20 days.

This fight appeared on the undercard of Sergey Kovalev's and Eleider Alvarez's clash for the WBO World Light heavyweight championship.

Bivol vs Chilemba stats

Back in August 2018, Dmitry Bivol stepped into the ring with an undefeated record of 13 wins, zero losses, and 0 draws, 11 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

Isaac Chilemba made his way to the ring with a record of 25 wins, 5 losses and 2 draws, with 10 of those wins by knockout.

The stats suggested Bivol had a massive power advantage over Chilemba, boasting a 85% knockout percentage compared to Chilemba's 40%.

Dmitry Bivol was the younger man by 4 years, at 28 years old.

Chilemba had a height advantage of 2 inches over Bivol. That also extended to a 1-inch reach advantage.

Both Dmitry Bivol and Isaac Chilemba fought out of an orthodox stance.

Bivol was the less experienced professional fighter, having had 19 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2014, 9 years and 1 month later than Chilemba, whose first professional fight was in 2005. He had fought 52 fewer professional rounds, totaling 214 compared to Chilemba's 266.

Isaac Chilemba was ranked number 12 by the WBA in the 175lb division.

Bivol vs Chilemba form

Dmitry Bivol had stopped all of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight before this contest, he had defeated Sullivan Barrera on March 3, 2018, by technical knockout in the 12th round in their WBA World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Madison Square Garden, New York, United States.

Prior to that, he had defeated Trent Broadhurst on November 4, 2017, by knockout in the 1st round in their WBA World Light Heavyweight championship fight at Salle des Étoiles, Monte Carlo, Monaco.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Cedric Agnew on June 17, 2017, by technical knockout in the 4th round in their WBA Interim World Light heavyweight championship fight at Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino, Events Center, Las Vegas, United States.

Before that, he had won against Samuel Clarkson on April 14, 2017, by technical knockout in the 4th round in their WBA Interim World Light heavyweight championship fight at MGM National Harbor, Maryland, USA.

He had beaten Robert Berridge on February 23, 2017, by technical knockout in the 4th round in their WBA Interim World Light heavyweight championship fight at Forum, Nizhny Tagil, Russia.

Isaac Chilemba had beaten 2 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had defeated Blake Caparello on March 16, 2018, by unanimous decision in their 12 round contest at The Melbourne Pavilion, Victoria, Australia.

Prior to that, he had been beaten by Oleksandr Gvozdyk on November 19, 2016, by unanimous decision in the 8th round at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, United States.

Going into that contest, he had lost to Sergey Kovalev on July 11, 2016, by unanimous decision in their WBA Super World Light Heavyweight, IBF World Light Heavyweight and WBO World Light heavyweight championship fight at DIVS, Ekaterinburg, Russia.

Before that, he had been beaten by Eleider Alvarez on November 28, 2015, by majority decision in their 12 round contest at Centre Videotron, Quebec City, Canada.

He had defeated Vasily Lepikhin on March 14, 2015, by unanimous decision in their 10 round contest at Bell Centre, Montreal.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Dmitry Bivol had been fighting more than Isaac Chilemba.

Going into this contest, Dmitry Bivol had last fought 5 months and 1 day ago, while Isaac Chilemba's last outing had been 4 months and 19 days ago.

Bivol's last 5 fights had come over a period of 1 year, 5 months and 12 days, which means he had been fighting approximately every 3 months and 15 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 25 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 5 rounds on average.

Chilemba's last 5 fights had come over a period of 3 years, 4 months and 21 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 8 months and 4 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 54 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 10.8 rounds on average.

What time did Bivol vs Chilemba start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 10:00 PM EST / 7:00 PM PST at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, New Jersey, United States, which was around 3:00 AM BST in the UK.

Who broadcast Bivol vs Chilemba?

Bivol vs Chilemba was broadcast on HBO in the US.

What were the odds on Bivol vs Chilemba?

Dmitry Bivol was a 1/100 (-10000) favorite going into the contest, while Isaac Chilemba made his way into the ring at 16/1 (+1600) with oddsmakers.