Round-by-Round: Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven - 23 May 2026

[Ruthless-RKO]

The ref gave Rico around 30 seconds so sort the mouthpiece out.

That on top of the KD count.

Rico would have been finished the next round.

I mean we’ll never know for sure.

We’ve seen worse.

Nothings gonna change.

Either watch it or don’t.

On to the next fight.

[forcefraser]

I think it's pretty clear to all now that the bell had gone when Lyson stopped the fight.

I get that you can stop a fight after the bell. It's rare and when it does happen it's usually when the guy is absolutely gone.

This was a World Heavyweight title fight where one guy was arguably up on most people's card and had the chance of pulling off a monumental upset and setting himself up for generational wealth

He instantly protested so clearly had his wits about him.

He may well have got starched in the 12th, most probably would, but we'll never know.

Electing to stop this fight when he did was a terrible call, almost everone interviwed straight after and today agree.

I want to see U.S refs reffing big fights from now on. I'm sick of the British refs ruining fights due to either panicking, incompetence or something worse

[forcefraser]

Most people calling it a bullshat stoppage.

Let it go to the 12th , no debate at all as far as I'm concerned. Lyson messed up.

I watched the youtube with bitter conspiracy theorist Porky, who thought the stoppage was fine. Almost every other boxing channel thought otherwise

Porky reminds me of Geoff Boycott. A mouth who loves nothing more than the sound of his own voice

Porky used to be very good. I can’t watch it anymore. He’s anti Peter Fury after worshipping him for years and loves Usyk so can’t be rational over this. I dread to think what he’s got to say on it.

Mate, I've rarely seen a more blinkered biased piece. Clearly allows personal prejudice get in the way of reasoned observation.

He has a narrative based on who he does and doesnt like and just ploughs ahead on that basis. I think I'll take your advice and give him a miss from now on

[golden_labrador]

He instantly protested so clearly had his wits about him.

I'm not saying he was concussed but plenty of out of it fighters instantly protest. this means nothing

[golden_labrador]

on a separate note, I read somewhere WADA weren't involved in this fight. anyone know it this is true, and if not why not?

[veriton]

I want to see U.S refs reffing big fights from now on. I'm sick of the British refs ruining fights due to either panicking, incompetence or something worse

Good point. More refs need to think 'What would Steve Smoger do'

[Controversial]

on a separate note, I read somewhere WADA weren't involved in this fight. anyone know it this is true, and if not why not?

Yeah that's what I read too. I wonder if there's a rematch if that would change.....


.

[Controversial]

On another side note I'd never heard of Rico before this fight was planned but he comes across very well, polite, respectful and modest. Nice to see.

[881073]

Rico was 100% fine, like he allways is, he wasn't even hit hard or anything like that, he was just head forward while beïng out of balance. Coinsidentally Usyk touched him while he fell, but it's not like it was a hard hit or something.

Right after Rico instantly stood up because he obviously wasn't hurt, then he took his mouthpeace back and continued to fight.
Then Usyk missed him a few times, then the bell rang, then Usyk actually did land about 5 hits after the bell and suddenly the referee stops the fight. Now you assume that is to disqualify Usyk?
But no, he claimed Rico couldn't continue, despite Rico actually did continue till the bell rang, but even after the bell rang Rico continued to defend against Usyk his attacks, he just stopped attacking himself.

Now you can't find this in the footage of DAZN, but if you look up the footage from the fans you can see that after this even Usyk is surprised about what the referee is doing and walks around beïng surprised.
In the DAZN cut and paste version of the footage somehow, he immedietly go's down on his knees and starts praying/thanking god or something.

Rico would most likely have KOed Usyk in the 12th round, probably early in that round actually, like he usually does. Usyk was clearly destroyed and clearly walked a lot worse then Rico did.


I think Usyk himself also knows the truth and he doesn't seem to be the guy who loves to live in a lie, but I could be wrong.
I have seen guys like Lennox Lewis who lives in the lie that he was a better boxer then Vitali Klitschko. I don't think Usyk is like that.

If I was Usyk I would have admitted the fight should be a No Contest at most, if not a DQ for Usyk. Let's see what Usyk is really made of.

[Controversial]

Now you can't find this in the footage of DAZN, but if you look up the footage from the fans you can see that after this even Usyk is surprised about what the referee is doing and walks around beïng surprised.
In the DAZN cut and paste version of the footage somehow, he immedietly go's down on his knees and starts praying/thanking god or something.

This? It cuts just as he was going to drop to his knees

[forcefraser]

Rico was 100% fine, like he allways is, he wasn't even hit hard or anything like that, he was just head forward while beïng out of balance. Coinsidentally Usyk touched him while he fell, but it's not like it was a hard hit or something.

Right after Rico instantly stood up because he obviously wasn't hurt, then he took his mouthpeace back and continued to fight.
Then Usyk missed him a few times, then the bell rang, then Usyk actually did land about 5 hits after the bell and suddenly the referee stops the fight. Now you assume that is to disqualify Usyk?
But no, he claimed Rico couldn't continue, despite Rico actually did continue till the bell rang, but even after the bell rang Rico continued to defend against Usyk his attacks, he just stopped attacking himself.

Now you can't find this in the footage of DAZN, but if you look up the footage from the fans you can see that after this even Usyk is surprised about what the referee is doing and walks around beïng surprised.
In the DAZN cut and paste version of the footage somehow, he immedietly go's down on his knees and starts praying/thanking god or something.

Rico would most likely have KOed Usyk in the 12th round, probably early in that round actually, like he usually does. Usyk was clearly destroyed and clearly walked a lot worse then Rico did.


I think Usyk himself also knows the truth and he doesn't seem to be the guy who loves to live in a lie, but I could be wrong.
I have seen guys like Lennox Lewis who lives in the lie that he was a better boxer then Vitali Klitschko. I don't think Usyk is like that.

If I was Usyk I would have admitted the fight should be a No Contest at most, if not a DQ for Usyk. Let's see what Usyk is really made of.

Please immediately send me an ounce of whatever you have been smoking.

[Ruthless-RKO]

VERHOEVEN FILES PROTEST AFTER CONTROVERSIAL STOPPAGE LOSS TO USYK

Rico Verhoeven isn’t going down without a fight inside or outside of the ring.

Verhoeven posted on his Instagram story that he’s protesting his 11th-round stoppage loss to Oleksandr Usyk in their Ring and WBC heavyweight title bout to headline “Glory in Giza” in Egypt on Saturday.

“Official protest has been filed on our way to the airport,” Verhoeven wrote. “Rules only matter if they are applied when it matters most.”

Should the protest be successful, Verhoeven (2-1, 1 KO) would be in line for a rematch against Usyk (25-0, 16 KOs). That result would complicate Usyk’s future with multiple mandatory challengers on the horizon.

Chief among them is Agit Kabayel, who was in the ring after the fight concluded. Kabayel (27-0, 19 KOs) is The Ring’s No. 2 heavyweight and the mandatory challenger for Usyk’s WBC title.

Queensberry Promotions’ allegedly, who represents Kabayel, said he’d be opposed to his fighter being sidelined for a rematch between Usyk and Verhoeven.

"They're talking about maybe doing a rematch with Usyk and Rico. We're not going to stand for that,” Warren told Sky Sports.

"Usyk's been there long enough, and he wants his moment, and that's what we'll be pushing for with WBC, and hopefully get it over the line and do that same time in the autumn.”

Verhoeven, who was 66-10 with 21 KOs as a kickboxer and reigned as the Glory Kickboxing heavyweight champion from 2013-25, fought valiantly and was on the doorstep of pulling off one of the biggest upsets in sports history. With just more than 20 seconds left in the 11th round, Usyk connected with a right uppercut that sent him to the canvas. Verhoeven rose on unsteady legs and wobbled to his corner to have his mouthpiece put back in after spitting it out.

Sensing the end was near, Usyk swarmed Verhoeven with a flurry of punches while he was in the corner, though, the Dutchman tried to fight back rather than trying to hold on to survive. As the bell began to ring, referee Mark Lyson stopped the fight.

Two of the judges, Manuel Oliver Palomo and Fabian Guggenheim, had the bout 95-95, while Pasquale Procopio had Verhoeven ahead 96-94. Verhoeven would have needed a knockdown in the 12th round to score a draw.

[joshj909]

Rico was 100% fine, like he allways is, he wasn't even hit hard or anything like that, he was just head forward while beïng out of balance. Coinsidentally Usyk touched him while he fell, but it's not like it was a hard hit or something.

Right after Rico instantly stood up because he obviously wasn't hurt, then he took his mouthpeace back and continued to fight.
Then Usyk missed him a few times, then the bell rang, then Usyk actually did land about 5 hits after the bell and suddenly the referee stops the fight. Now you assume that is to disqualify Usyk?
But no, he claimed Rico couldn't continue, despite Rico actually did continue till the bell rang, but even after the bell rang Rico continued to defend against Usyk his attacks, he just stopped attacking himself.

Now you can't find this in the footage of DAZN, but if you look up the footage from the fans you can see that after this even Usyk is surprised about what the referee is doing and walks around beïng surprised.
In the DAZN cut and paste version of the footage somehow, he immedietly go's down on his knees and starts praying/thanking god or something.

Rico would most likely have KOed Usyk in the 12th round, probably early in that round actually, like he usually does. Usyk was clearly destroyed and clearly walked a lot worse then Rico did.


I think Usyk himself also knows the truth and he doesn't seem to be the guy who loves to live in a lie, but I could be wrong.
I have seen guys like Lennox Lewis who lives in the lie that he was a better boxer then Vitali Klitschko. I don't think Usyk is like that.

If I was Usyk I would have admitted the fight should be a No Contest at most, if not a DQ for Usyk. Let's see what Usyk is really made of.

Please immediately send me an ounce of whatever you have been smoking.

Check out his previous posts. He's a deluded kickboxing fanboy. Ignore-list worthy post by him. Most people come to the forum to have a conversation about boxing with people who know boxing not with those wasting our time with posts like that.

[881073]

Now you can't find this in the footage of DAZN, but if you look up the footage from the fans you can see that after this even Usyk is surprised about what the referee is doing and walks around beïng surprised.
In the DAZN cut and paste version of the footage somehow, he immedietly go's down on his knees and starts praying/thanking god or something.

This? It cuts just as he was going to drop to his knees

Oh, in this version it seems like Usyk only hit him once or twice after the bell rang actually.
Still, clearly a wrong stoppage, Rico was active exactly the way he should have from start till end.

[forcefraser]

Now you can't find this in the footage of DAZN, but if you look up the footage from the fans you can see that after this even Usyk is surprised about what the referee is doing and walks around beïng surprised.
In the DAZN cut and paste version of the footage somehow, he immedietly go's down on his knees and starts praying/thanking god or something.

This? It cuts just as he was going to drop to his knees

Certainly puts to bed any arguments that the fight WASN'T stopped after the bell. It clearly was.

What an awful stoppage

[Ruthless-RKO]

TRAINER PETER FURY: VERHOEVEN DESERVES ANOTHER SHOT AT USYK

In 2015, Peter Fury was the mastermind in the corner as his nephew Tyson traveled to Germany.

He proved a wide winner past Wladimir Klitschko with a savvy 12-round points nod, heralding in a new era for the heavyweight division. At the time, Tyson’s victory over the dominant Klitschko was regarded as a massive upset, but on Saturday night, Fury and his new charge Rico Verhoeven came close to eclipsing that achievement.

A kickboxing legend but boxing novice, Verhoeven (1-1, 1 KO) pushed The Ring and unified champion Oleksandr Usyk (25-0, 16 KOs) to the very limit before being stopped in the 11th round in the shadows of the Great Pyramids of Giza in Egypt.

The boxing world expected Usyk to produce an exhibition befitting of the spectacular surroundings and dominate the Dutchman during their crossover clash.

Ignoring the outside noise, Fury quietly got on with the task of preparing his man to shock the world. The plan almost worked.

Verhoeven's feints, forward momentum and work rate bamboozled Usyk, and as the rounds passed the kickboxing legend seemed to be on course for a stunning victory.

Eventually in the 11th round, Usyk found the answer. He dropped Verhoeven with an uppercut and his follow up attack forced referee Mark Lyson to step in and controversially stop the fight as the bell sounded.

After the fight, Fury told DAZN that he understood those who wrote off Verhoeven beforehand.

"I'm not slating anybody and saying, 'Oh, he's got it wrong' because if I was an analyst and didn't know the work that we were doing, I'd say the same," Fury said.

"I'd say he's a kickboxer, he's going nowhere and you'd expect for him to go one, two or three rounds, but Oleksandr said to me, 'We knew when you was at the back of this [in his corner], there was going to be a problem somewhere.'

"Look, we worked on him and done the best we could but the only thing that let Rico down tonight was experience."

Over the course of his storied career, Usyk has always been able to call on almost superhuman levels of stamina and needed another of his trademark late surges to bring an end to Verhoeven's brave effort.

Lyson's decision to step in and halt the action as the bell sounded to end the 11th has caused inevitable contention. The scorecards were close at the time of the stoppage and debate continues to rage about exactly what would have happened had the 37-year-old been allowed to answer the bell for the 12th and final round.

Rather than getting drawn into a row, Fury bit his tongue. He believes Verhoeven did more than enough to warrant a second crack at the unified champion.

"I'm about respect. Blessed Lord, respect. Respect your opponent and at the end of it, Usyk's got the win," he said.

"Full congratulations to him but I think they should — I think Oleksandr will — run it back. Let's run it back because the guy deserves another shot. Look what's happened here. A little bit of more experience. This is the first time he's ever, ever gone past five rounds. It's amazing."

[Glass Joe]

[joshj909]

VERHOEVEN FILES PROTEST AFTER CONTROVERSIAL STOPPAGE LOSS TO USYK

Rico Verhoeven isn’t going down without a fight inside or outside of the ring.

Verhoeven posted on his Instagram story that he’s protesting his 11th-round stoppage loss to Oleksandr Usyk in their Ring and WBC heavyweight title bout to headline “Glory in Giza” in Egypt on Saturday.

“Official protest has been filed on our way to the airport,” Verhoeven wrote. “Rules only matter if they are applied when it matters most.”

Should the protest be successful, Verhoeven (2-1, 1 KO) would be in line for a rematch against Usyk (25-0, 16 KOs). That result would complicate Usyk’s future with multiple mandatory challengers on the horizon.

Chief among them is Agit Kabayel, who was in the ring after the fight concluded. Kabayel (27-0, 19 KOs) is The Ring’s No. 2 heavyweight and the mandatory challenger for Usyk’s WBC title.

Queensberry Promotions’ allegedly, who represents Kabayel, said he’d be opposed to his fighter being sidelined for a rematch between Usyk and Verhoeven.

"They're talking about maybe doing a rematch with Usyk and Rico. We're not going to stand for that,” Warren told Sky Sports.

"Usyk's been there long enough, and he wants his moment, and that's what we'll be pushing for with WBC, and hopefully get it over the line and do that same time in the autumn.”

Verhoeven, who was 66-10 with 21 KOs as a kickboxer and reigned as the Glory Kickboxing heavyweight champion from 2013-25, fought valiantly and was on the doorstep of pulling off one of the biggest upsets in sports history. With just more than 20 seconds left in the 11th round, Usyk connected with a right uppercut that sent him to the canvas. Verhoeven rose on unsteady legs and wobbled to his corner to have his mouthpiece put back in after spitting it out.

Sensing the end was near, Usyk swarmed Verhoeven with a flurry of punches while he was in the corner, though, the Dutchman tried to fight back rather than trying to hold on to survive. As the bell began to ring, referee Mark Lyson stopped the fight.

Two of the judges, Manuel Oliver Palomo and Fabian Guggenheim, had the bout 95-95, while Pasquale Procopio had Verhoeven ahead 96-94. Verhoeven would have needed a knockdown in the 12th round to score a draw.

Verhoeven (2-1, 1 KO) - Ring magazine are run by fornicating idiots

[Ruthless-RKO]

It’s 1-1 isn’t it?

[forcefraser]

That's excellent

[JC]

Now you can't find this in the footage of DAZN, but if you look up the footage from the fans you can see that after this even Usyk is surprised about what the referee is doing and walks around beïng surprised.
In the DAZN cut and paste version of the footage somehow, he immedietly go's down on his knees and starts praying/thanking god or something.

This? It cuts just as he was going to drop to his knees

Certainly puts to bed any arguments that the fight WASN'T stopped after the bell. It clearly was.

What an awful stoppage

It was stopped after the bell but the referee starts trying to stop it (i.e. get past Usyk to Rico) before the bell has rung. I assume once you have decided to stop the fight you can’t change your mind.

I’m not saying it was a good stoppage, btw.

[forcefraser]

This? It cuts just as he was going to drop to his knees

Certainly puts to bed any arguments that the fight WASN'T stopped after the bell. It clearly was.

What an awful stoppage

It was stopped after the bell but the referee starts trying to stop it (i.e. get past Usyk to Rico) before the bell has rung. I assume once you have decided to stop the fight you can’t change your mind.

I’m not saying it was a good stoppage, btw.

Interesting point. I did see him on his way *from behind Usyk" to try and stop the fight right before the bell rang.

Sure you are allowed to change your mind. When he got to Rico the bell had gone, he could have thought "Ok, this bloke has fought his nads off and he'll get a 60 second break now". Rico wasn't slumped over or in cuckoo land at that moment.

The ref panicked. A cooler head would have realised the bell had now gone, fighter not in immediate danger, a minute rest coming up, fighter likely ahead on card.

As hard as I try I cant see this as anytjing other than an awful stoppage, like the majority of people

Rico wasnt taking a Taylor "Froch, punches in bunches and it's over" type of shellacking

[dickbelden2]

HORRIBLE STOPPAGE---Rico deserved 1 more round. Hope he gets another big fight now !

[golden_labrador]

on a separate note, I read somewhere WADA weren't involved in this fight. anyone know it this is true, and if not why not?

Yeah that's what I read too. I wonder if there's a rematch if that would change.....

there were one or two very big physiques fighting last night, some Holyfield lats etc. some asking questions about Sanchez too.

why wouldn't they use WADA (if it's true they didn't)?

[gilgamesh]

on a separate note, I read somewhere WADA weren't involved in this fight. anyone know it this is true, and if not why not?

Yeah that's what I read too. I wonder if there's a rematch if that would change.....

there were one or two very big physiques fighting last night, some Holyfield lats etc. some asking questions about Sanchez too.

why wouldn't they use WADA (if it's true they didn't)?

Maybe big fights happen so rarely in Egypt that it simply wasn't part of their rulebook there.