GIZA, Egypt, May 23 (Reuters) – Ukraine’s unbeaten heavyweight world champion Oleksandr Usyk stopped Dutch former kickboxer Rico Verhoeven with one second left in the penultimate round of a WBC title fight to avoid what could have been one of the greatest boxing upsets of all time.
The ‘Glory in Giza’ fight at the Pyramids of Egypt on Saturday was considered a mismatch but Verhoeven, whose sole previous professional boxing fight was 12 years ago, tore up the script in mind-boggling fashion from the opening bell with some scorecards putting him ahead.
With Usyk weighing in heavier than ever and looking strangely lethargic at times, the 39-year-old Ukrainian went into the penultimate round needing to pull something out of the bag to be sure of a win most had taken for granted.
It came right at the end of the 11th round, with Usyk dropping Verhoeven with a right uppercut and the Dutchman beating the 10 count but not the referee who stepped in to wave off further punishment.
“I thought it was an early stoppage but in the end it’s not up to me,” Verhoeven, 37, told DAZN. “I was already super thankful for this opportunity for Usyk to take this fight.”
Verhoeven was fighting only for the WBC belt, with Usyk also risking the loss of his WBA and IBF ones which would have been declared vacant titles had he been beaten.
In the end, the Ukrainian extended his record to 25 unbeaten fights.
“This fight was hard. It was a good fight. I was just boxing, my right uppercut, bang. Thank you god,” he said.
“Right now, in Ukraine, my people and my country – there is bombing. My people are sitting in bomb shelters. My family. My daughter sent me a message: ‘Papa, I love you, I’m afraid.’ I said, ‘oh my God’.”
Victory for Verhoeven would have been one of the biggest shocks in the sport’s history, surpassing Mike Tyson’s 1990 defeat by journeyman James ‘Buster’ Douglas.
Usyk, a 2012 Olympic champion and consummate professional, had been expected to wrap things up by the half distance at least on some experts’ estimations. Others expected an even earlier deadline.
Verhoeven did his ring walk as a ‘pharaoh’ and was flanked by others holding flaming torches with the Pyramids illuminated behind them.
Usyk adopted a more gladiatorial look, wearing the helmet and outfit of a Roman centurion as an array of fireworks lit up the night sky. But the fight was one of his toughest and he struggled to deal with an opponent who showed few signs of crumbling.
(Writing by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Ken Ferris)
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