Bivol to face Zinad in June 1 title defense with Beterbiev out

Dmitry Bivol is staying on the mega June 1 event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, after all.

Bivol will now defend the WBA light heavyweight title against Malik Zinad after Artur Beterbiev withdrew from their highly anticipated undisputed title bout due to injury. Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority, confirmed the news to ESPN's Mike Coppinger.

A scheduled heavyweight bout between former champion Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang has been promoted to the main event of the June 1 card, which also features a heavyweight tilt between Filip Hrgovic and Daniel Dubois.

Alalshikh said earlier this week that Beterbiev-Bivol will be rescheduled for later in 2024. Beterbiev will undergo surgery after rupturing his meniscus and is reportedly expected to be sidelined until at least September.

Bivol is coming off a unanimous decision rout of Lyndon Arthur last December and is 22-0 as a pro.

His new opponent, Zinad, stepped into the ring just last week, earning a majority decision win in Australia. The 30-year-old Libyan is also 22-0 with 16 knockouts.