Dmitry Bivol defending his IBF title on Usyk–Verhoeven undercard?

Former undisputed light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol is expected to face Germany’s Michael Eifert in an IBF light heavyweight title bout that will likely feature on the undercard of the Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven event. The show is scheduled to take place on May 23 at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt.

According to reports from journalists Dan Rafael and Jake Donovan, the two fighters have finally reached an agreement for the bout, which represents a mandatory defense of Bivol’s IBF title.

Eifert (13–1, 5 KOs) has been the IBF’s official mandatory challenger since March 2023, when he defeated Jean Pascal to secure the position. For nearly three years, the German contender stepped aside to allow other major fights to take place, including Bivol’s series of bouts with Artur Beterbiev, and later had to wait for the champion to recover from back surgery.

After several unsuccessful attempts to finalize the deal, both camps received multiple deadline extensions from the IBF before eventually reaching an agreement for the fight.

If Bivol (24–1, 12 KOs) enters the bout in full health, he is widely expected to be the favorite and could secure another successful title defense before once again pursuing the biggest names in the light heavyweight division.