Oleksandr Oleksandrovych Usyk vs. Ricardo Verhoeven & Frank Sanchez vs. Richard Torrez Jr. RBR.

And if it was the Usyk of even a year or two ago who was at a far more suitable weight Rico would have been taken out in the first half of the fight and not had near the success he did, let alone if that was a prime much faster of both hand and foot Usyk with razor sharp reflexes and reaction times. As said, that loss of speed and him being that sluggish and makes a huge difference both from an offensive and defensive perspective for him and the fight would've looked very different even if he came in much lighter, let alone a prime version at his usual weight

Even the version who beat Dubois in the rematch was only marginally faster than Dubois and only just evading Dubois' shots. The version who fought Dubois in the first fight looked very noticeable faster, more agile, and more fluid and less stiff and he was well past his athletic prime ever then.

There was many reasons I was worried about this fight and I outlined almost all of them in detail and people were mocking me beforehand but I was proven right once again

 

He just fought a much smarter, far more accurate and heavier handed version of Chisora in there tonight, and KO'd him.

 

Giving a non boxer a shot at the title in their second pro fight, leapfrogging the rightful guys that have been sacrificing in this sport at a chance to fight for those same titles, just for a little bit of extra money, and then for that very fight you show up not in your usual shape, and you underperform, and are actually losing the fight in many peoples eyes... I mean, idk, theres no sugar coating that to me.

Is disgraceful too harsh? I think so, Id agree with you there. But theres no moral victory here just because Usyk pulled out a controversial win. This was horrible in every conceivable dimension.... the champion giving a non boxer a title shot, the champion showing up out of his usual shape, and then the champion actually genuinely losing multiple rounds to a non boxer and entered the 11th round with a genuine chance of not getting a victory.

I wouldnt say Usyk is a disgrace, but it was a poor chapter for Usyk and for boxing.

 

One thing I will say, is leading up to this fight Rico had already won me over. What a class act. He reminds me a bit of a Sergio Martinez type, in that everything he says seems genuine and thoughtful.

Its hard to root for him if he fights a boxer because any success he has comes at the expense of boxing, but Id love if he could get himself the Ngannou fight and win that, and maybe even set himself up for the Jake fight and win that by stoppage in a big event, or head to the UFC and become champion there hopefully.

War Rico.

 

The 11th began with Rico having landed more power punches in 7 of the 10 complete rounds.

Thats 7 rounds to 3 in power punches landed, while being the one that was applying almost all of the pressure.

He might not have been 'dominating' but he was clearly getting the better of the fight in most peoples eyes Id think.