Boxing fans have been waiting seven years for Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol – but the fight has been bubbling underneath the surface for far longer.

The compatriots were once teammates on the Russian national amateur boxing programme and sparred together in preparation for a major tournament – although neither man can remember which one.

Bivol and Beterbiev square off on October 12 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for all the marblesGETTY

“We did some sparring but it was a long time ago and there is nothing to take away from it,” Beterbiev told talkSPORT.com.

“I don’t remember exactly when they took place.

“It was either World Championship, European Championship or Olympic Games.”

Beterbiev is six years Bivol’s senior and competed in the heavyweight division (201lbs) towards the back end of his amateur career.

In his vested days, he won two European Championships and a World Championship but was unable to pick up an Olympic medal on two attempts (Beijing 2008 and London 2012).

When Bivol joined the senior national team as a sprightly middleweight, he looked up to Beterbiev, who was one of the top fighters on the squad.

“He was a leader because he is a bit older than me,” Bivol told talkSPORT.com.

“I was looking at all of the leaders because I was young.

“It was my first year in the men’s category and I was watching who was the first and second best there.

“Just watching, we didn’t have any relationship. We weren’t enemies, we weren’t friends.”

Beterbiev won everything but the Olympics as an amateurGETTY

YouTube – GlamteraBivol achieved more as a junior amateur than at senior level[/caption]

Due to the size disparity between them at the time, Bivol insists the rounds they shared together were light.

“It wasn’t hard sparring because we were two different weight classes and it wasn’t sparring for something,” he added.

“It was to help him get prepared for the Olympic Games or somewhere.

“I actually think it might have been before then. They were technical rounds, we were moving together on the national team.”

Unlike their sparring sessions, there will be no holding back when the immovable object and the unstoppable force collide.

The long-awaited all-Russian showdown goes down on Saturday night in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for all four major sanctioning body belts at light heavyweight.

It marks the first time in 22 years that the undisputed 175lbs crown has been on the line and the anticipation is rife.

GETTYBivol is the WBA champion while Beterbiev holds the WBO, IBF and WBC titles[/caption]

Here’s how their numbers compare

Beterbiev, 39, is the only active world champion with a 100 per cent knockout ratio, having finished all 20 of his fights inside the distance.

Among his long list of victims are Brits Callum Smith, Anthony Yarde and Callum Johnson.

Bivol, 33, is also undefeated and boasts an unblemished 23-0 record.

He is currently in possession of the final piece of the undisputed puzzle – the WBA belt – a title he has held for a remarkable seven years.

The Russian slickster has bested several great light-heavyweights including Gilberto Ramirez, Joe Smith Jr and Jean Pascal.

But his crowning moment undoubtedly came in 2022 when he dethroned former pound-for-pound king Canelo Alvarez in a shutout display.

The only victory that could possibly surpass his heroics that night is one over WBC, WBO and IBF light heavyweight champion Beterbiev this weekend.