The undefeated heavyweight world champion from Ukraine, Oleksandr Usyk, stopped former Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven in the penultimate round with one second left on Saturday to prevent one of the biggest boxing upsets in history.
The WBC title fight at the Pyramids of Giza was expected to be no contest, but Verhoeven, whose only professional boxing match was 12 years ago, tore up the script in spectacular fashion from the first bell and looked on his way to victory.
He had proven to be more than just a clever rival and had given Usyk a real worry before the contentious stoppage. Most of the fight had seen Usyk frustrated by his jerky style, bulldozing intensity and strong right hand and it had looked like a sluggish performance from the Ukrainian.
Verhoeven beat the count just before the bell and Usyk pounced in a wild finish, dropping the challenger late in the 11th. The referee called it off. The referee made a very controversial decision with so little time left in the round.
Moments later, still in the ring, Verhoeven told Dazn: “I thought it was an early stoppage but it’s not up to me in the end. “I told the referee, ‘Either let me go in the 12th or let me go out on my shield. On the scorecards we looked pretty even. He thanked for the opportunity and said Usyk had offered a rematch. “I hope the boxing world embraces me as a boxer and I’m very proud of my performance,” he added.
Oleksandr Usyk Gear Up to a Win
Verhoeven had gotten off to a strong start in the first round, landing a couple of devastating right punches. Usyk had a good fourth round in which he rocked Verhoeven with an uppercut but he struggled to find his range and appeared to be losing most of the early rounds. The rounds passed with everyone waiting for Usyk to show his dominance but that was only seen at the end of the eleventh. A flush right hand knocked Verhoeven down and through the ropes. The moment he was awake, Usyk unleashed a bombardment. The bell looked like it might save his opponent, until the referee stepped in.
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