Rico Verhoeven to be trained by former Tyson Fury coach for Usyk title fight

Kickboxing star Rico Verhoeven is a “serious fighter,” according to Tyson Fury’s former trainer, who believes his charge will exceed expectations against Oleksandr Usyk.

The bona fide heavyweight king has been permitted to defend his WBC title against Verhoeven, headlining a Ring Magazine show at Egypt’s Pyramids of Giza on May 23.

Ordinarily, a sanctioning body would not allow such a contest to take place for its belt, with world title challengers typically needing to be ranked in the top 15 of a recognised organisation.

The WBC, however, has seemingly invoked article 3.3 (c) of its Rules and Regulations, stating that such title defences can take place under ‘special circumstances’.

Indeed, this does appear to be a ‘special’ event – based on its location alone – yet many boxing fans will nonetheless be unfamiliar with Verhoeven’s credentials.

This is because the 36-year-old has had just one outing in a professional boxing ring, resulting in a second-round stoppage victory over Janos Finfera who, back when they fought in 2014, had a record of 0-5.

Nevertheless, the Dutchman’s trainer, Peter Fury, who trained his nephew Tyson for his famous win over Wladimir Klitschko back in 2015, has told Boxing King Media that, beyond his decorated kickboxing career, Verhoeven is well-versed in the art of pugilism.

“People need to get behind this fight, because I can tell you now: I’m certainly not going to turn up on the world stage [and] embarrass myself, and embarrass my fighter.

“My fighter’s a serious fighter, so this will be a great fight. Trust me. Usyk’s an incredible champion. I respect him as a fighter, a boxer, and I respect him as a human being.

“And I respect Rico. So I’m going to do my job, and I’m going to enjoy it, and whatever the outcome is, it is.”

While Usyk will definitely defend his WBC title against Verhoeven, it remains to be seen whether his IBF and WBA straps will also be on the line.

Either way, the likes of WBC ‘interim’ champion Agit Kabayel and No.1 contender Lawrence Okolie are likely irked to have not been given their shot at the Ukrainian’s belt.