Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven: Could element of surprise see Dutchman pull off great boxing upset?
Unbeaten unified heavyweight world champion Oleksandr Usyk fights kickboxing superstar Rico Verhoeven in Giza, Egypt on Saturday; Dutchman bidding to pull off one of boxing's biggest upsets to become world champion two fights into his professional career as a boxer
Thursday 21 May 2026 21:44, UK
Rico Verhoeven hopes the element of surprise can inspire the unlikeliest of victories over Oleksandr Usyk and seal one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.
The Dutch kickboxer, who has won his only professional boxing match, takes on the unbeaten two‑weight, three‑time undisputed world champion Usyk in an unprecedented world‑title bout.
Verhoeven's chances of defeating heavyweight supremo Usyk have been widely dismissed, but the 36‑year‑old has vowed to show the world how much he has learned since transitioning to boxing.
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"I was 36 when I started transitioning into boxing," he said at his pre‑fight press conference. "It was about being open‑minded and testing myself.
"The curiosity of whether I can still do this at my age, how I could emerge in the sport of boxing, and whether it is still possible.
"I think we did quite a good job. I'll showcase that to the world on Saturday."
'A whole different approach'
Verhoeven believes he can bring something to the ring that Usyk has never experienced in his 24‑fight career.
"It will be a whole different approach," he added.
"I'm bringing something he hasn't seen before because he's only faced boxers who have been boxing their whole life. I haven't."
Usyk is putting his world titles on the line in Egypt. If the Ukrainian were to lose, the IBF belt would become vacant and the status of the WBA championship would come under review. The WBC has sanctioned the contest - so Verhoeven could, unthinkably, become a WBC world champion just two fights into his boxing career.
Beating Usyk 'the ultimate'
"The first objective is to win," he said. "How we're going to win, we'll see. If it's a knockout, it's a knockout. If it's a decision, it's a decision.
"If I get the win, then I'll have faced the best pound‑for‑pound fighter in the world and beaten him in 12 rounds where he tried everything and couldn't beat me. That would be the ultimate."
Usyk, meanwhile, has vowed to do his talking in the ring, insisting he will secure victory whenever the opportunity arises.
"My language will be in the ring," the Ukrainian said ahead of his first fight since his knockout victory over Daniel Dubois at Wembley last July.
"Maybe it [a Verhoeven win] is possible, maybe it's not. We'll see. It's God's will.
"I have no idea how many rounds this fight will be. When I have a chance [to end it], I will do it."
Promoter Eddie Hearn acknowledged the odds were stacked against Verhoeven.
"On paper, the fight is an impossible mountain to climb for a normal man," he said. "But the reason Verhoeven has accomplished what he has is because he's not a normal man.
"This giant of a man has an opportunity to, let's be honest, forge one of the great upsets in the history of boxing.
"It's a mountain to climb, but he's a mountain - a man‑mountain. He's full of heart and power, and I know how badly he wants it. May the best man win."
'Egypt's greatest sporting event'
The Pyramids of Giza will provide a stunning backdrop to what Hearn described as "one of the biggest sporting moments Egypt has ever seen".
"On Saturday night, the world heavyweight championship will be contested at the foot of the pyramids, one of the seven wonders of the world," Hearn added.
"If there was ever anything dramatic or strange to happen, it's going to happen at the foot of the pyramids in Egypt."
