Rico Verhoeven has officially confirmed that he plans to appeal his controversial loss to Oleksandr Usyk after their heavyweight title fight in Egypt.
The drama comes after the referee stopped the fight at 2:59 of Round 11, just one second before the bell, after Usyk dropped Verhoeven with a huge uppercut and followed with a barrage of punches.
While many praised Usyk for finding the finish late in the fight, others questioned whether the stoppage came too quickly or even after the round had effectively ended.
Verhoeven’s team reportedly believes the fight should have continued to the scorecards instead of being waved off so close to the bell.
The fight, held in front of the Pyramids of Giza, had already shocked many fans after Verhoeven pushed the unbeaten champion much harder than expected in only his second professional boxing match.
Despite the appeal, boxing fans know it is very rare for fight results to be overturned.
Still, the controversy has already sparked growing calls online for a rematch between Usyk and Verhoeven.
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