UNDISPUTED METRICS: ANALYZING USYK’S 24-0 RECORD AGAINST THE HEAVY-HITTING DUTCH "KING OF KICKBOXING."
Usyk vs Verhoeven is ON: Read why the WBC sanctioned this heavyweight title fight and get the May 23 Giza match details.
Oleksandr Usyk’s unexpected fight with kickboxing legend Rico Verhoeven is officially set to be for the WBC world heavyweight title.
Usyk, now 39, will put his iconic green and gold belt on the line when he faces the 36-year-old Dutch star in a massive crossover event in Giza, Egypt, on May 23.
No one really saw this coming, especially since Usyk is still unbeaten at 24-0, with 15 knockouts. Truth is, he’s run out of real challenges in the heavyweight division. After dominating as undisputed cruiserweight champion, he’s managed to repeat that feat at heavyweight, beating Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua twice each along the way.
People expected Usyk’s next fight to be against Deontay Wilder, who’s clearly past his prime. But the chance to step into the ring with Verhoeven, a huge name in kickboxing, was just too tempting. Verhoeven almost fought Joshua back in February, but that plan blew up after Joshua’s tragic car accident in Nigeria, which took the lives of two of his closest team members.
Even though Verhoeven has just one official boxing match, a knockout win over Janos Finfera back in 2014, the WBC agreed to put its title up for grabs in this matchup.
The WBC released a statement, saying, "After careful consideration, the WBC Board of Governors has decided to sanction Oleksandr Usyk’s voluntary title defence against legendary kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven.
At our 63rd Annual Convention in Bangkok, we granted Usyk a voluntary defence. After that, we got a petition to approve Usyk vs Verhoeven as that defence.
Usyk’s been incredibly active, taking on and beating top fighters like Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, and Daniel Dubois twice each while keeping his undefeated streak alive. That kind of run is unheard of in heavyweight boxing.
Rico’s been at the top level in kickboxing since 2005, and over nearly twenty years, he’s become one of the sport’s all-time greats. He’s headlined massive stadium shows, fighting in front of 30,000, sometimes 40,000 fans. At 36, he’s fought 76 times professionally and just recently gave up the Glory Kickboxing Heavyweight title after staying unbeaten for 11 years.
Switching from kickboxing to boxing isn’t new. Plenty of Muay Thai fighters have moved to boxing and fought for WBC titles early on. This decision sticks to our rules and regulations.”
TYSON FURY BLASTS ANTHONY JOSHUA AFTER DANIEL DUBOIS STOPS FABIO WARDLEY IN MANCHESTER
Tyson Fury has labelled Anthony Joshua "chinny" after Daniel Dubois secured the WBO heavyweight title against a resilient Fabio Wardley.
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Tyson Fury wasted no time after Daniel Dubois stopped Fabio Wardley this past weekend, using the moment to take a shot at Anthony Joshua.
Dubois picked up his second heavyweight title Saturday night in Manchester, grabbing the WBO belt from Wardley in a wild, bloodied battle that’s already being called a fight of the year candidate.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Dubois, though. He hit the canvas twice in the first three rounds but bounced back hard, battering Wardley late and leaving his face a mess as the final bell sounded.
Wardley never actually went down during the fight, despite looking wobbly near the end. Credit to him for sheer toughness, but Dubois still beat him decisively. This was Dubois’ first victory since his massive upset over Anthony Joshua earlier in 2024, when he floored AJ four times in one night.
On Sunday, Fury chimed in about Dubois’ latest win. With his own fight against Joshua rumoured for later this year on Netflix, Fury saw an opening to stir the pot.
“Just been thinking about Dubois’ crazy fight last night,” Fury said. Dubois fought [Jarrell] Miller, stopped him, but never put him down. He fought. [Filip] Hrgovic stopped him but never put him down. Fought Wardley last night and stopped him, but didn’t put him down. He hit Usyk with bombs but didn’t drop him. But against Anthony Joshua? Drops him five times.”
Fury added, “I’m not saying Joshua’s got no chin, but facts are facts. Take it however you want. Nobody else went down, not Miller, not Hrgovic, not Usyk, not Wardley. But Joshua hits the deck five times? Chinny, get up, slink!”
Fury is coming off a comeback win over Arslanbek Makhmudov and has already signed on to fight Joshua this year. Joshua will warm up first against Albanian heavyweight Kristian Pregna in Saudi Arabia on July 25 before facing Fury.
Promoter Frank Warren says Fury vs. AJ will probably land in October, though Fury might want another tune-up, which could push things back a bit.
As for Dubois, he’s got options. There’s talk of a rematch with Wardley, a chance to settle the score with Usyk in a trilogy, or a domestic showdown with Moses Itauma. Dubois’ dad, Stan, told talkSPORT he’d rather see his son fight another British heavyweight next, not Usyk.
HOW DANIEL DUBOIS SURVIVED TWO KNOCKDOWNS TO STOP A BLOODY FABIO WARDLEY
"I had to dig deep." Read Daniel Dubois' full reaction to his stunning comeback victory against Fabio Wardley in Manchester.
The punch that changed everything wasn't thrown by either of the fighters.
Fabio Wardley came out blazing in his title defence, dropping Daniel Dubois just 10 seconds in. He did it again in the third round, making it look like his big night. But then, something strange happened. As Dubois got up after the fourth round, his trainer, Don Charles, slapped him hard on both cheeks.
That’s when Dubois woke up. “I had to make him realise what he needed to do,” Charles said afterwards. It’s not exactly the kind of thing you see at team-building seminars, but it worked. Dubois turned on, and suddenly Wardley’s reign started to unravel.
Wardley had picked Dubois for the first fight since collecting the WBO belt that Oleksandr Usyk dropped. Honestly, it looked like a smart pick: he dropped Dubois twice and set the tone. But after that slap, Dubois started seeing Wardley’s moves coming; those wild lunges became easier to dodge.
He landed his stiff jab and followed up with savage right hands. Wardley’s jaw somehow took the hits, but his nose was pouring blood, and his right eye was almost swollen shut. He kept pushing forward, showing crazy heart, while Dubois just kept piling on. The fight turned into a brutal spectacle, the kind you can’t look away from.
Wardley got checked twice by doctors but kept fighting. Honestly, it could've stopped before the second-to-last round, when referee Howard Foster finally stepped in. Dubois got his second world title; Wardley, battered and worn, just managed a thumbs up to his mum.
Dubois summed it up later: “I had to dig really deep. When you’re a warrior, you go to dark places. I was nervous at first, all over the place, and had to fight my own battles. That slap woke me up. My dad and everyone were in my corner; I couldn’t let them down.
“Fabio came to fight; he was tough. We were exhausted; it was a real war. I had to use all my skills to win. Great fight, great battle, and I’m No. 1 again.” Sure, Usyk might argue about that, but Dubois proved something; he got up off the canvas and won.
People have called Dubois a quitter since the Joe Joyce fight six years ago. Wardley himself thought Dubois would fold again in Manchester, and for three rounds it looked like he was right until reality snapped Dubois awake.
