The WBC kept its promise to reward Rico Verhoeven for his performance against Oleksandr Usyk, placing the Dutch kickboxing star at No. 8 in its latest heavyweight rankings despite his 11th-round stoppage loss on May 23.
Verhoeven entered the Usyk fight with a 1-0 professional boxing record and was considered by many to be a heavy underdog against the unified heavyweight champion. Instead, he pushed Usyk through one of the toughest nights of his recent career before being stopped late in the contest.
After the fight, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman said Verhoeven will be ranked high because of his performance against Usyk. The latest rankings released by the sanctioning body have now confirmed that decision.
Verhoeven is behind Tyson Fury, Lawrence Okolie, Moses Itauma, Filip Hrgovic, Anthony Joshua, Frank Sanchez and Deontay Wilder. He was positioned ahead of Efe Ajagba, Richard Riakporhe, Martin Bakole, Bakhodir Jalolov, Otto Wallin, Richard Torrez Jr., and Michael Hunter.
The ranking comes despite Verhoeven only having two professional boxing bouts on his record. His only win came in 2014 before returning to the sport this year for the fight with Usyk in Egypt.
The WBC’s decision is likely to cause debate, given the number of established heavyweight contenders ranked below him. At the same time, it confirms that the sanctioning body deemed Verhoeven’s performance against Usyk worthy of immediate top-10 status.
Usyk’s next step remains unchanged. The WBC has ordered negotiations for a mandatory defense against interim champion Agit Kabayel, with the two sides given 30 days to reach an agreement.
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Last updated on 2026/06/03 at 11:10
