Dmitry Bivol finished Malik Zinad via TKO at the 2:06 mark of the sixth round to retain the WBA light heavyweight title Saturday at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Bivol picked up his first knockout since March 2018 after nine straight decision wins.

Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority, announced in the ring after the fight that Bivol will face Artur Beterbiev in a long-awaited undisputed title fight on Oct. 12 in Riyadh. Bivol and Beterbiev were initially scheduled to square off on Saturday's card, but Beterbiev withdrew in early May due to a knee injury.

Bivol dominated most of the fight against Zinad as a heavy betting favorite. He controlled the action and picked apart his late-replacement opponent with his jab before getting the job done with a huge onslaught in the sixth round. Bivol had Zinad hurt up against the ropes, and the referee decided he had seen enough.

Bivol was coming off a lopsided unanimous decision win over Lyndon Arthur last December in Riyadh. The victory over Zinad was the Russian's 12th finish in 23 professional bouts.

Zinad, who was born in Libya but fights out of Malta, falls to 22-1 as a pro with the defeat.