Artur Beterbiev has been ordered to defend his undisputed titles against lesser-known IBF mandatory challenger Michael Eifert.

This comes just one day after Bivol’s attorney petitioned the four major sanctioning bodies to order an immediate rematch with Beterbiev after losing a narrow majority decision to his compatriot on Saturday night.

Bivol and Beterbiev put on a war of attrition last weekendGetty

Straight after the fight, Saudi boxing chief HE Turki Alalshikh stated his intentions to have Beterbiev and Bivol rematch next while both boxers expressed their willingness to run it back.

The fight was extremely close with the Russians separated by four or fewer punches in eight of the 12 rounds – and boxing fans are clambering to see a sequel.

However, esteemed boxing journalist Keith Idec reports that the IBF has ordered overdue mandatory Eifert to face Beterbiev next.

The 13-1 German boxer earned his status by defeating a 40-year-old Jean Pascal via unanimous decision in March 2023.

When the news broke, fans were left outraged and took to social media to voice their displeasure in their masses.

One supporter wrote: “Nobody wants to see that s***, we want the Bivol rematch.”

Another tweeted: “Pure BS. We need that rematch! Tf the IBF doing?”

A third added: “Standard IBF not listening to people or the boxers and ruining undisputed.”

Meanwhile, somebody else remarked: “Yeah, that’s definitely not what anyone wants to see.

“Turki’s going to have to get the rematch deal done soon and get the IBF to push this back.”

Beterbiev has been ordered to face IBF mandatory EifertGETTY

It is unlikely the IBF will step aside and allow the rematch to happen.

Historically, the sanctioning body has been very insistent on forcing mandatory fights.

A case in point is the Oleksandr Usyk vs Tyson Fury rematch.

After Usyk defeated Fury to become the first undisputed heavyweight champion of the four-belt era in May, the IBF ordered the Ukrainian to box Daniel Dubois.

As there was a rematch clause in their contracts, Usyk couldn’t back out of a second fight and so was forced to relinquish the red and gold strap less than two weeks after unifying the division.

Bivol and Beterbiev don’t have a rematch clause in their deals so the champion could choose to face Eifert in a bid to keep hold of his belts.

However, it seems more likely that Beterbiev will vacate the IBF title and rematch Bivol for three of the four world titles due to the magnitude of the fight.