Glory in Giza - Oleksandr Usyk to defend WBC world title to Rico Verhoeven in Egypt
Glory in Giza - Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven announced
Oleksandr Usyk (24-0, 15 KOs) will fight kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven (1-0, 1 KO) at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt on Saturday, May 23, live on DAZN.
The heavyweights will clash over 12 championship rounds for Usyk's WBC heavyweight world title.
The defending champion stated, "I truly respect people who reach the very top in their sport. Rico is one of them. I respect his journey - he's truly the king of kickboxing. But this is boxing - a different game, with its own rules and its own kings."
Rico Verhoeven is the longest-reigning GLORY heavyweight champion after defending his title a record 13 times. He is 36 from Holland, known as 'The Prince of Kickboxing'.
Verhoeven is unbeaten in professional boxing with one win via KO, but that took place 12 years ago.
Rico was scheduled to make his professional boxing debut against Nikolaj Falin at Mix Fight Gala XV in Darmstadt, Germany on April 26, 2014, but his opponent was changed to János Finfera for undisclosed reasons. Verhoeven defeated the 0-5 Hungarian by second-round knockout.
Oleksandr Usyk is boxing's first-ever undisputed cruiserweight and heavyweight champion in a four-belt era.
After cleaning up at cruiserweight in 2018, the Ukrainian stepped up to heavyweight to defeat Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Daniel Dubois twice each to be crowned undisputed on two occasions in boxing's glamour division.
In December 2025, he vacated his WBO championship after declining to defend to his mandatory challenger, Fabio Wardley.
Despite all his success, fight fans have been left feeling disappointed by the announcement of this fight, which has prompted the promoters to come out in defence of the decision.
Turki Alalshikh tweeted: "It is not fun. It is a dangerous fight."
The Ring Magazine's Mike Coppinger further attempted to convince the public that it is a valid fight: "Indeed, kickboxers have had a lot of success in heavyweight boxing. Vitali Klitschko. Dillian Whyte. Big Baby Miller. Alexander Povetkin. This isn’t a wrestler boxing Usyk. It’s a man who has knockout power and stands up when fighting. Usyk has fought practically everyone at heavyweight, from four fights total with Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury to another two with Daniel Dubois, Derek Chisora, etc. Yes, Wardley and Kabayel are deserving. But if Usyk wants to have some fun with a big spectacle, so be it."
One boxing fan immediately replied: "Mike, we know you work for Turki but come on. All of those guys had 20 fights before fighting at world level. And two of them came up waaaaayyyy short at world level. And this ain't just world level, its Oleksandr Usyk. Its a glorified sparring match for him. Stop taking us for fools."
Reactions
Lou DiBella: I'm not bullshitting... I dunno who tf Rico Verhoeven is. Like, I never heard of him. I love Usyk, but I couldn't give a rat's ass about this boxing match.
Adam Catterall: Oleksandr Usyk has delivered every fight we asked for multiple times over so if he wants to have some fun against a legend from another sport in an awesome setting then crack on. However, the fact the WBC are supposedly sanctioning it as a legit title fight is diabolical.
Rob Tebbutt: Absolutely farcical.
Ozzy Smith: Coppinger is not a serious boxing reporter. He is solely a mouthpiece for a state controlled media outlet. His take is absurd, Verhoeven has no chance in this fight and would lose to the majority of domestic level British fighters.
The Great Pyramid of Giza
The Great Pyramid of Giza is the largest Egyptian pyramid. It served as the tomb of pharaoh Khufu ("Cheops"), who ruled during the Fourth Dynasty of the Old Kingdom.
Built c.2600 BC over a period of about 26 years, the pyramid is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only wonder that has remained largely intact.
