Rico Verhoeven insists he has proven he belongs in boxing despite suffering an 11th-round stoppage against Oleksandr Usyk in Egypt on Saturday night.
The former kickboxing champion pushed Usyk much harder than many expected before the referee stepped in late in the fight. At the time of the stoppage, two judges had the fight tied at 95-95, while a third had Verhoeven ahead 96-94.
“Yeah, it’s bad. I felt like I was so close to shocking the world,” Rico Verhoeven told DAZN Boxing after the fight.
“I’m here to stay. I think I’ve shown the world that I can definitely box. Even as a kickboxer they were telling me, ‘Who is this guy? He can’t do anything. It’ll be four or five rounds,’ but I think after four or five rounds we were pretty even on the scorecards.
“So, I think it was a crazy, crazy performance. I felt like I was so close to winning, but it is what it is.”
Verhoeven came into the fight as a heavy underdog against the undefeated unified heavyweight champion, but his physical pressure, size and willingness to trade gave Usyk problems during several of the early and middle rounds.
The performance immediately changed the conversation around Verhoeven’s future in boxing.
Rather than treat the fight as a one-off crossover appearance, the Dutch heavyweight made it clear afterwards that he intends to continue boxing despite the defeat. His comments also reflected how competitive the fight remained before Usyk finally took control in the championship rounds and forced the stoppage.
For much of the fight, Verhoeven looked far more comfortable than many expected against one of boxing’s most accomplished champions.
A heartbreaking loss for Rico 😢#UsykRico pic.twitter.com/oNuZfUTB96
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) May 23, 2026
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Last updated on 2026/05/23 at 20:20
