Can Rico Verhoeven actually beat Oleksandr Usyk? On Saturday, that is exactly what the kickboxing icon will try to do, as he challenges Usyk for boxing’s WBC heavyweight title.
Usyk is the unified champion, unbeaten as a professional, and is a former Olympic gold medalist. The Ukrainian made his mark as the greatest cruiserweight of his generation, earning the undisputed titles in that division, before doing the same at heavyweight.
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But Verhoeven possesses a similar legacy in the kickboxing world, having reigned as Glory champion for 11 years, and having won each of his last 22 fights. As stated above: the Dutchman, 37, will come to win.
Rico Verhoeven is a great in the world of kickboxing (PA)
It’s a sentiment echoed to The Independent by Alistair Overeem, a kickboxing star turned UFC legend, who previously trained with Verhoeven and even prepared more than once to fight him.
“I know Rico quite well,” Overeem said over Zoom. “I mean, it was 15 or 16 years ago that I first heard heard of him. He was in my training camp. We were actually supposed to fight on two or three occasions, so I’ve had camp on him – a lot of analysis, a lot of training.
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“I’ve been in the fight game a couple of decades, I study fighters, I study patterns, I study everything. [He’s a] strong, big individual, strong mind, solid fighter. [I’m] quite surprised he’s going into the boxing realm, [because] I thought his hands were not as dangerous; he was known for his kicks, and he had some footwork stuff, some strategic gameplanning as well.
“He’s known for his strong cardio, and he outsmarted the kickboxers [while] training with Peter Fury for 15 years, so there’s knowledge there. He was boxing for a long time, but it’s easy to apply advanced techniques on people like kickboxers, whose [boxing] level is quite basic compared to boxer’s levels.”
Overeem was referencing Verhoeven’s longtime boxing coach, the uncle of Tyson Fury. Incidentally, Tyson was outpointed by Usyk twice in 2024 after his own crossover bout in 2023; on that night, ex-UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou dropped Tyson and almost won a decision. Peter was not part of Tyson’s team for any of these contests, however.
Still, Ngannou’s performance versus Fury is evidence that Usyk should not be complacent against Verhoeven, although the latter has only boxed once professionally (in a 2014 win).
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“He’s definitely intending to win, to create a mark,” Overeem said of Verhoeven, “[but] I have a feeling that it’s going to be a tough night for him. It will be difficult for him to land a punch, I think, because Usyk is next level.
Oleksandr Usyk facing off with Verhoeven in London, ahead of their bout at the pyramids (Getty)
“But what does Rico have to lose? And for Usyk, it’s another puzzle to decode. I think he’ll be able to do it, but also the missing factor is the element of surprise. Nobody has seen Rico box. Yes, there’s some footage, but what will he do in a real boxing fight? He might have complete new motions and movements.
“And it’s 125kg that you have to process [if you’re Usyk], so there’s still some X factors within this fight.
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“I have to give Rico compliments, because he’s doing it, right? He is jumping in the boxing world with an all-time great. Yes, he dominated kickboxing, and yes, he also needed a big challenge, because his aspiration is movies – and the world doesn’t really know who he is, despite his strong track record [in kickboxing].
“He needs to make moves, so bravo to him, it is a great storyline […] It’s always exciting when someone comes from another sport.”
There will be an X factor outside the ring, too: Usyk and Verhoeven will fight at the pyramids of Giza, headlining an unprecedented event in Egypt.
The bout is a voluntary title defence for Usyk, whose next fight is expected to be a mandatory defence of the WBC belt, if he should retain it against Verhoeven. Agit Kabayel is the WBC’s mandatory challenger.
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