People really think Rico was good?

You're not giving Rico any credit at all. He might not pass the eye test in boxing but he is very effective in what he does, and he was beating Usyk fair and square. It was a corrupt stoppage.

 

I’ve seen many in the hardcore & casual bases calling usyk the GOAT heavyweight over the last couple of years

 

They are trying to reconcile what they saw with their pre existing world view. And when the Usyk crowd does that the end result is that Rico was a special talent and that Usyk losing a bunch of rounds to all his opponents is just a coincidence. All the fighters Usyk fights just happen to be generational talents. Not a coincidence.