The 39-year-old Russian Beterbiev defeated his countryman Bivol via split decision on Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to become the first four-belt world champion in the division.
In public, Bivol’s manager Vadim Kornilov and promoter Eddie Hearn criticized the team’s scorecards, which were 116-112, 115-113, and 114-114 for Beterbiev.
On Wednesday, Bivol, 33, requested assistance from the WBO, WBA, IBF, and WBC in obtaining a rematch with Beterbiev via his attorney.
However, the IBF has now formally directed Beterbiev to start “negotiations” with German opponent Michael Eifert, who is a necessary opponent.
But this might not be the end of the story.
According to the IBF, Beterbiev may still ask for a “exception” so that his voluntary defense might be taken into consideration.
None of the four main sanctioning bodies have the authority to reverse an official result, but as sanctioning bodies, they do allow boxers to contest for their world titles.
The event was overseen by the British Boxing Board of Control over the weekend, just like other Saudi fight nights in the previous 12 months.
The 116-112 scorecard was described as “disgusting” by Hearn, although Bivol did not openly challenge the outcome.
