Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2 Card Moved To Smaller Venue In Latest Major Change

"The Last Crescendo" headlined by Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol 2 has been moved to a smaller venue.

Artur Beterbiev lands a right hand on Joe Smith Jr. / IMAGO/ZUMA Press Wire

On a card that has been filled with last-minute changes, one more change has been made to "The Last Crescendo."

BoxingScene reported that the card headlined by Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol 2 will be moved to the Venue Riyadh. The card was originally going to take place at the Kingdom Arena and the decision was to move the fight was reportedly to improve the atmosphere for one of the greatest cards in boxing history.

Beterbiev-Bivol II will take place in smaller arena to promote better atmosphere🏟️

The fight has been moved from the 25,000 capacity Kingdom Arena to the Venue Riyadh that holds 6,000 people.

A sellout crowd is expected on Saturday for #BeterbievBivol2 pic.twitter.com/aq4Ava0Sr1

— BoxingScene.com (@boxingscene) February 21, 2025

The difference between the two venues is staggering. The Kingdom Arena has a capacity of 25,000, while the Venue holds just 6,000 fans. The Kingdom Arena has hosted most of the Riyadh Season's big cards, including the first bout between Beterbiev (21-0, 20 KOs) and Bivol (23-1, 12 KOs) on Oct. 12 and the two bouts between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury. The only boxing card the Venue has hosted was Gilberto Ramirez's unanimous decision win over Chris Billam-Smith on Nov. 16.

BoxingScene also reported that the organizers of "The Last Crescendo" are expecting a sellout crowd.

MORE: Roy Jones Jr Predicts How Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2 Will Play Out

A great atmosphere goes a long way toward improving a boxing event, though, it's also worth wondering why there would be such a seismic change in where "The Last Crescendo" is taking place. A last-second switch to a venue that holds 19,000 fewer fans is peculiar to say the least, and wouldn't make much sense if they had ticket sales close to capacity at Kingdom Arena.

The venue change is the latest in a card that's been filled with them. Shakur Stevenson (22-0, 10 KOs) is now defending his WBC lightweight title against Josh Padley (15-0, 4 KOs) after Floyd Schofield Jr. (18-0, 12 KOs) was forced to withdraw due to an illness.

IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois was also taken off of the card due to an illness after he was originally scheduled to face Joseph Parker. Parker will now defend his interim WBO title against Martin Bakole on Saturday.

The Last Crescendo begins on DAZN PPV and PPV.com at 11 a.m. ETST on February 22nd.

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