DMITRY BIVOL’s boxing journey wouldn’t have begun if it weren’t for martial arts legend Jackie Chan.
WBA light heavyweight champion Biwall, like many others, grew up watching the Hollywood legend take names and kick bad guys in the ass in his numerous movies.
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Chan’s legendary fight scenes inspired Bivol to learn karate, but the lack of competition led him to the boxing ring.
“I’ve always wanted to learn how to fight and protect myself,” he told SunSport.
“I watched a lot of movies with Jackie Chan when I was a kid, and I always wanted to learn to fight like him.
“My father took me to a training ground to practice karate, but there wasn’t much competition there. Then my father took me to a boxing gym, where I fell in love with boxing.”
Like many amateur boxers, Bivor has a desire to win Olympic gold — although he quickly put that dream on hold when he turned pro sooner than expected.
The 31-year-old said: “Originally my ultimate dream was to go to the Olympics and win gold, but my career has taken a different direction.
“Before the Olympics, I became a professional boxer and always wanted to achieve in the professional team and go as far as possible.
“It’s important for me to know that I did everything I could in the sport and gave everything to be at the top.”
Bivor will return to the ring on Saturday with boxing’s pound-for-pound king Canelo Alvarez.
Alvarez was in his domineering form in his super middleweight unification bout with Caleb Plant last November, but Bivol is confident of sparking a huge upset.
He said: “First of all, Canelo has had close combat and has been beaten.
“Every boxer has a certain quality and makes mistakes.
“My goal is to take advantage of these mistakes in the fight. I want everyone to adjust it to watch the fight.
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“I may not be the strongest or fastest, but I have a whole set of boxing qualities in this fight.
“My package made me, and this set of skills is what I’ll be fighting on May 7th.
“It’s really important to be very focused and focused when you’re fighting people at the top level.
“Your every move and every punch counts, I’m at the top of the game, don’t miss a punch or attack and give my opponent more punches.”
Bivor was the underdog in the ninth defense of the WBA 175-pound belt, but nothing but a shoulder belt out of the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
He said: “I believe in myself unconditionally in this fight, as I have in every fight before. If I follow my plan, I believe I will win this fight.
“I’ve dedicated my life to the sport, and that basically answers that question.”