Rico Verhoeven vs Oleksandr Usyk official for WBC Heavyweight Championship — May 23 in Egypt (DAZN)

Oddone · Feb 28, 2026

catchwtboxing said: ↑

Uncle Peter, not Big John the ultimate male.
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I stand corrected. Cheers

Mickc · Feb 28, 2026

peter_uk said: ↑

Did you have the same attitude toward Fury and Joshua for their circus fights? And objectively speaking Verhoeven is a tougher fight than either Ngannou or Paul (not that it matters).
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To be fair to Joshua he did not hold any belts or titles so was not putting the division on hold .

UnleashtheFURY · Feb 28, 2026

DoctorJones said: ↑

I am an Usyk fanboy, I literally die of anxiety every time he fights, but considering his inactivity this fight genuinely **** me off. At least if he was fighting according to KB rules and KOing the KB champion in his own field it would show how boxing is the superior art. But a regular fight for a belt with a non boxer, it is a farce
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Boxers would get totally mogged in kickboxing with only a punchers chance unless they cross train and learn how at the very least check low kicks efficiently. Even then its a totally different game fighting under K-1 rules. Fast paced due to the limit rounds. Being blast with kicks from all angles, knees, more to worry about from the clinch etc. Usyk is a special talent and very high IQ so he would probably adapt and do very well in kickboxing but a lot of top heavyweights would get completely wrecked.

catchwtboxing · Feb 28, 2026

Oddone said: ↑

I stand corrected. Cheers
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It's easy to get that Hills Have Eyes looking clan confused.

catchwtboxing · Feb 28, 2026

roughdiamond said: ↑

The fact it has taken over a year to schedule and announce this, alongside it being for an actual belt, makes me hope Usyk legitimately loses in some way. Usyk likely won't box for a minimum of 6 months after this, given his previous activity levels, so the top level of the division will have been stagnated for around 20+ months before things really get moving again. People trying to compare this to Ali's reign must be joking. In my opinion it's unacceptable.

Absolute farce. Anyone actually defending this is just an Usyk fanboy, not a boxing fan.
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Except that it hasn't stagnated. He gave up the WBO belt, which was due. The WBC has already said that the WBO would go first, so he is doing this instead. Hypothetically, he will circle back to Kabayel. As of now, no one has been harmed, and if you want to recognize Wardley as the champ, that is up to you. It's a big risk as Wardley might very well lose to Dubois, who Usyk has already beaten twice, but that is up to you.

LiamInChains · Feb 28, 2026

Usyk should be stripped, go take this joke fight without the belts no problem, he's holding up the division. People using whataboutery... well it wasn't right when other fighters did it either. The sport really is becoming a joke.

catchwtboxing · Feb 28, 2026

LiamInChains said: ↑

Usyk should be stripped, go take this joke fight without the belts no problem, he's holding up the division. People using whataboutery... well it wasn't right when other fighters did it either. The sport really is becoming a joke.
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This is actually the answer. I am supporting the fight but Usyk should just reduce to one belt, and if he doesn't want to, then he should be helped. If he keeps the IBF, he can fight the winner of Chisora-Wilder as his next mando, and no harm done. Kabayel and Wardley can pursue their own paths, and his old pal Gassiev will be elevated to full WBA champ, thus giving Usyk another heavyweight champ of his record without lifting a finger.

Jolly Roger · Feb 28, 2026

As an Usyk fan, this is pap and I won’t be watching.

mrbigshot · Feb 28, 2026

I,m asking myself how many $$$ wbc got from usyk to really saction verhouven as wbc world title defence ? Why not fight joe next door and call ist a title defence ?

Is verhouven now a legit wbc contender ?

GGGfans · Feb 28, 2026

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The WBC title shoudn't be on the line.

LiamInChains · Feb 28, 2026

Why is the WBC still seen as the belt to have? They must be the least serious organisation when it comes to the sport of them all, just a big ‘sports opera’ company.

Serge · Feb 28, 2026

Whilst I can understand the criticism and would rather Usyk fought Kabayel or Fabio instead, Usyk's conduct both in and out of the ring has been so exemplary and such a breathe of fresh air that he has given the haters zero ammunition to fire against him which in itself has had them seething with rage for a long time, so much so they have had to cling to anything and everything they can no matter how tenuous and trivial it be to try and discredit him and tear him down. But now that he FINALLY gives them something with a bit of meat on the bone at 39 y/o at the end stage of his career they've all descended upon it like a pack of rabid wolves.

We saw the exact same with Loma who like Usyk was a model pro whose conduct in and out of the ring was exemplary and embodied everything right, noble and great about the sport but they crucify him and completely ignore all context, the same context they are quick to cite for so many others, even though both he and Usyk were/are routinely doing things that none of their boys, especially from the US, are doing or ever will in their entire careers and openly admit they'll never do unless they can stack the deck heavily in their favour. So the feigned outrage from these clowns is absolutely comical and wholly transparent

As said, this is Turki's doing and there have been no soft touches on Usyk's CV sans very late notice sub Witherspoon, whereas, conversely, so many of his fellow greats and former HW champs feasted on many soft touches in the midst of their primes.

Some of the absolute trash Ali, Louis, Holmes, Wlad, Vitali, The Dosser (that bum forged an entire career beating trash), Belly to name but a few fought was diabolical and yes we absolutely have to factor in Usyk's age and the stage of his career he's at when drawing a comparison because champions at his age and stage of his career were not fighting the best or highest rated B2B like he has been doing and late 30s champs are generally not as active as they were in their primes.

What's the point of treading the path Usyk and Loma trod, being model pros and routinely doing things at the drop of a hat others you slobber on the plums of will never do once, and displaying impeccable conduct when you won't give them credit for doing so but are oh so quick off the draw to crucify for the first instance they don't or slip up and do what others you worship at the altar of did numerous times in their primes or categorically refused to do or ever do once? Damned if you do, damned if you don't

mrbigshot · Feb 28, 2026

Funny enough : interesting whom they will put on the undercard since every top 100 guy would immediately outperform the main event .

Joe next door vs brian adams ?

ruffryders · Feb 28, 2026

It’s a joke and usyk has sold out.
Worse than Fury ngannou imo, I knew who ngannou was and everyone knows fury is a bit of a scammer.

out of the big 4 of this era, only one has had the honour to not been involved in fighting non boxers…who’d have thought that.

ruffryders · Feb 28, 2026

Serge said: ↑

Whilst I can understand the criticism and would rather Usyk fought Kabayel or Fabio instead, Usyk's conduct both in and out of the ring has been so exemplary and such a breathe of fresh air that he has given the haters zero ammunition to fire against him which in itself has had them seething with rage for a long time, so much so they have had to cling to anything and everything they can no matter how tenuous and trivial it be to try and discredit him and tear him down. But now that he FINALLY gives them something with a bit of meat on the bone at 39 y/o at the end stage of his career they've all descended upon it like a pack of rabid wolves.

We saw the exact same with Loma who like Usyk was a model pro whose conduct in and out of the ring was exemplary and embodied everything right, noble and great about the sport but they crucify him and completely ignore all context, the same context they are quick to cite for so many others, even though both he and Usyk were/are routinely doing things that none of their boys, especially from the US, are doing or ever will in their entire careers and openly admit they'll never do unless they can stack the deck heavily in their favour. So the feigned outrage from these clowns is absolutely comical and wholly transparent

As said, this is Turki's doing and there have been no soft touches on Usyk's CV sans very late notice sub Witherspoon, whereas, conversely, so many of his fellow greats and former HW champs feasted on many soft touches in the midst of their primes.

Some of the absolute trash Ali, Louis, Holmes, Wlad, Vitali, The Dosser, Belly to name but a few fought was diabolical and yes we absolutely have to factor in Usyk's age and the stage of his career he's at when drawing a comparison because champions at his age and stage of his career were not fighting the best or highest rated B2B like he has been doing and late 30s champs are generally not as active as they were in their primes.

What's the point of treading the path Usyk and Loma trod, being model pros and routinely doing things at the drop of a hat others you slobber on the plums of will never do once, and displaying impeccable conduct when you won't give them credit for doing so but are oh so quick off the draw to crucify for the first instance they don't or slip up and do what others you worship at the altar of did numerous times in their primes or categorically refused to do or ever do once? Damned if you do, damned if you don't
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He has been the role model champion…but has now sold out and abandoned his own code.

if he did this, after fighting regularly and for no belts etc, no problem.
But this is a joke….stagnant hw division because of him and his predecessor

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Rico Verhoeven vs Oleksandr Usyk official for WBC Heavyweight Championship — May 23 in Egypt (DAZN)

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Rico Verhoeven vs Oleksandr Usyk official for WBC Heavyweight Championship — May 23 in Egypt (DAZN)

Who would win?

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