Rico Verhoeven says his fight against Oleksandr Usyk “started to feel fishy” as soon as the open score updates started coming in during their heavyweight title fight last Saturday night in Egypt.
Verhoeven pushed Usyk harder than most expected before suffering a controversial 11th-round stoppage loss at the Pyramids of Giza. The Dutch kickboxing star says he believed he was clearly ahead for long stretches of the fight, only to see the official scores tell a different story.
“After round eight and we’re still tied, you’re like, “It’s starting to feel fishy,” because I feel like I’m winning these rounds,” Verhoeven said on The Ariel Helwani Show.
“I work more. I get hit less and I touch him more than he hits me. So maybe I should push it a little more.”
Verhoeven said he began to feel that the fight was viewed differently because he signed up as a kickboxing crusader.
“It is viewed through a protective box lens,” said Verhoeven. “Maybe because I’m an outsider, I have to put in that extra work to be even more convincing.”
The 36-year-old said he rewatched the fight and still believes he was leading comfortably before the late stoppage.
“Somewhere 8-2,” Verhoeven said when asked how he scored the fight in the 11th round.
“I look at certain rounds, and I’m like, ‘How did I lose that?’ He didn’t even touch me, maybe more than once or twice, and I hit him four, five, six times.”
Verhoeven was dropped by an uppercut late in the 11th round, but says he was fully capable of continuing. The fight was called off moments later in a stoppage that drew criticism from fans and fighters alike.
“I deserved, and the fans deserved to see that 12th round,” Verhoeven said.
Despite the loss, Verhoeven says he wants an immediate rematch with Usyk and has already lodged the result with the Middle East Professional Boxing Commission.
Click here to subscribe to our FREE newsletter
Related Boxing News:
Last updated on 2026/05/26 at 21:06
