Tim Bradley believes Oleksandr Usyk did not prepare seriously enough for his fight against Rico Verhoeven, and he thinks the heavyweight champion paid for it with one of the roughest nights of his career.
Bradley questioned Usyk’s conditioning, focus and overall sharpness while reacting to the controversial stoppage win over Verhoeven on the latest episode of his “Into the Storm” show. The former two-division world champion said Usyk looked heavier than normal before the opening bell and never looked like the fighter fans in previous title fights.
“I think he practiced half ass. I don’t think he practiced fully,” Bradley said on his YouTube channel. “I thought he was just going to walk through this guy, and this guy had his own freaking agenda. It is what it is.”
Bradley pointed to Usyk’s movement and appearance early in the fight as signs that something was off.
“Right when I saw the scales when Usyk came in about six, seven pounds over his usual optimum weight, I said, ‘Oh oh.’ I hope this guy didn’t take this guy lightly,” Bradley said.
“And then he gets in the ring in the first round. I’m like, ‘Who the hell is that?’ This is not the same Usyk I know who got energized and jumped on his toes.”
Bradley also praised Verhoeven’s game plan, saying the kickboxing star gave Usyk far more trouble than expected by repeatedly forcing the southpaw into awkward positions.
“Rico was in Usyk’s ass, period,” says Bradley. “He was in the fight, and he had a hell of a game plan.”
The Hall of Fame analyst added that Usyk still deserves credit for making late adjustments and getting the stoppage, but he warned that a dangerous fight against WBC interim heavyweight champion Agit Kabayel could come at the wrong time for the aging champion.
“It might just be the right time for him and to beat Usyk,” Bradley said of Kabayel.
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Last updated on 2026/05/27 at 22:53
