Rico Verhoeven speaks out on referee stopping Usyk fight with one second left in the round

Rico Verhoeven has spoken out on the controversial stoppage after his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk.

Verhoeven was challenging heavyweight king Usyk at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, and despite most expecting a huge mismatch heading into the contest, the Dutchman appeared on the verge of arguably the biggest upset in the history of boxing.

The kickboxing legend did enough to win a lot of the rounds heading into the closing stages, with a below-par Usyk struggling to cope with his unorthodox opponent.

Usyk finally found the shot he needed when he dropped his rival at the end of round 11, and while Verhoeven managed to get up, a further onslaught from the Ukrainian led to referee Mark Lyson stopping the bout. Many fans – and Verhoevens team – were incensed by the decision.

Post-fight, Verhoeven shared his thoughts on Lyson waving off the action, saying that he felt he deserved to go on for longer.

“I thought it was an early stoppage. It’s not up to me. I believe the referee knows that we’re almost at the end of the round, or let me go out on my shield or let the bell go…it was close and I thought we were equal on the scorecards.”

Vehoeven was then humble when asked if he deserved a rematch.

“It’s not up to me, it’s up to the organisation, let’s see what happens.”

Whether a second encounter could indeed happen remains to be seen, as the WBC has previously ordered Usyk to face mandatory challenger, Agit Kabayel, next, or risk being stripped of his belt.