37 year old Dutch kick boxer turned professional boxer Rico Verhoeven caught the attention of the boxing world by delivering a surprisingly brilliant performance against WBC and WBA Heavyweight Champion Oleksandr Usyk.
In only his second fight since transitioning from kick boxing, the Dutch went toe to toe with Usyk who had his fair share of struggles against Rico.
However, late in the 11th round, Usyk found success and caught Rico with a right upper cut that sent Rico to the canvas but a flurry of punches later got referee Mark Lyson to stop the fight right at the end of the round despite the Dutch challenger not suffering any significant damage from Usyk’s flurry. (Scroll down to watch video)
Fans at the purpose built arena overlooking the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt were surprised including the commentators on duty with significant backlash pouring in from boxing fans over the controversial stoppage.
At the time of the stoppage, two of the three judges had the bout tied 95-95 with the other judge having Rico in the lead 96-94.
Usyk landed 112 punches, with 89 of them being power punches registering 22% of his punches thrown landing while Rico landed 113 punches with 93 of them being power punches registering 22% of his punches thrown landing.
Speaking after the win to DAZN, Usyk said, “This fight was hard. It was a good fight. Thank you, God.”
On the other hand, Rico shared his disappointment about the early stoppage but was pleased with his performance.
“I thought it was an early stoppage but in the end it’s not up to me… I wanted the referee to let me go out on my shield or let me go in the twelfth. I felt we were pretty even on the scorecards. I am super proud of my performance and hopefully, the boxing world embraces me as a boxer” he said to DAZN.
Highlights of Oleksandr Usyk’s victory over Rico Verhoeven at the Pyramids of Giza 🎞️
Glory in Giza on DAZN 🥊 pic.twitter.com/D2KGDQXwI0
— Ring Magazine (@ringmagazine) May 24, 2026
