Oleksandr Usyk TKO11 Rico Verhoeven,... Oleksandr Usyk had a very difficult time with kickboxer Rico Verhoeven, and wound up retaining his world heavyweight championship with the help of a quick stoppage by the referee. Verhoeven was seemingly on the verge of an upset of historic proportion when Usyk landed an uppercut with about ten seconds left in round eleven. Before the round could resume, Verhoeven got a little extra rest as his fallen mouthpiece was cleaned. Usyk landed a couple of more punches, and while Verhoeven appeared shaken, there did not seem to be any basis to stop the fight before the round ended. Still referee Mark Lyson declared it to be a technical knockout at an announced time of 2:59 in round eleven. From the replay, it seems that the bell sounded to end round eleven a second BEFORE the referee ended it. Verhoeven was gracious in defeat, but he had every right to be given the chance to come out for round twelve and see if he could have held on for a decision win. Most observers had Verhoeven ahead on the cards, including Boxingtalk, who had it 97-93 for Verhoeven after ten. According to photos posted on social media, the official scores after ten rounds were 95-95 (twice) and 96-94 Verhoeven. Boxingtalk strongly disagrees with calling the fight even after ten rounds.

 

Verhoeven deserves a rematch, but during the post-fight ring interviews, the man who writes the boxers' checks, Turki Alashikh of Saudi Arabia, indicated his preference that Usyk fight Agit Kabayel in Germany next, with a Verhoeven rematch after that.

 

Usyk had trouble dealing with not only the size and reach but also the energy level of the 37 year-old Verhoeven, who fought aggressively and bounced on his toes with good head movement. Usyk did not appear to be in great shape and made almost no attempt to slow Verhoeven with a body attack. Usyk landed clean head shots, but they had little effect on the Dutch kickboxer.

 

Perhaps taking the measure of his opponent in the opening rounds, Usyk fought cautiously, ceding at least the first three to the more aggressive Verhoeven. Usyk began to open up in round four, although Verhoeven did not seem fazed. Round five was very close, but the sixth belonged to Usyk.Verhoeven, however, refused to surrender his momentum. Rounds seven through ten were close and competitive, but clearly Usyk was not at his best. Perhaps he was distracted by the terrible situation in his war-torn country, Ukraine, or perhaps at 39, Usyk was showing his age.