Oleksandr Usyk’s fight against Rico Verhoeven is being treated more like a spectacle than a serious heavyweight title defense by Teddy Atlas, who spent much of his preview joking about pyramids, King Tut, and whether Usyk should even fully focus on the fight.
“We have a better chance of seeing King Tut make a comeback than we do of seeing Verhoeven pull off what would be more than an upset,” Atlas said on his channel while previewing the May 23 fight in Egypt.
“It’s an event. If somebody deserves a little rest, look, you don’t take anybody for granted. He’s a big strong guy. He’s in good shape. He’s physical. His game is seasoned in the kickboxing world. You don’t take anybody for granted, but he doesn’t think he has a chance against Usyk.”
Atlas spent much of the preview talking about the setting at the Pyramids of Giza more than the actual competitive side of the fight.
“The pyramids. We’re going to see the Sphinx. We might see King Tut. We’re going to see something with this tomb or whatever. But we’re not going to see an upset.”
The comments came during Atlas’ latest podcast previewing the card headlined by Oleksandr Usyk and Rico Verhoeven. Atlas also argued that Usyk has earned the right to fight a softer fight after years of elite opposition.
“Usyk deserves an easy one. He earned it. He unified the heavyweight title twice,” Teddy said. “He unified all the cruiserweight belts. He won a gold medal in the Olympics. The guy does nothing but win, and he fights everybody.”
Atlas also questioned how aggressive Usyk will even choose to be once the fight begins.
“It’s going to be can’t he do it. Does he want to do it? Does he want to do it and how fast does he want to do it?” said Atlas.
“He’s going to use his jab. He’s going to take a piece of land. He’s going to look over at the Sphinx. Is it deteriorating more? Is it starting to lose its nose a little? Is it building back up? Ah, back to the fight.”
Atlas added that Verhoeven’s high guard and upright stance could make him an easy target for Usyk’s combinations if the heavyweight champion decides to press for a stoppage.
“When a guy covers like that, you fight a guy like Usyk, it’s like having a heavy bag in front of you. Usyk will string punches together. He’ll take what you give him. He’ll go to the body or split the guard with the uppercut,” Atlas said.
The quotes came on Teddy Atlas’ podcast while previewing Usyk-Verhoeven
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Last updated on 2026/05/18 at 12:43
