Verhoeven compares kickboxing reign to Usyk in WBC title defence

Rico Verhoeven has likened his kickboxing dominance to Oleksandr Usyk's boxing career when explaining his WBC bridgerweight title credentials. The Dutchman says his 12-year run in kickboxing earned him the sanctioning body's recognition.

“Like what Oleksandr did within boxing, I did within kickboxing for 12 years. Defeat everybody and some people multiple times. The WBC is also the only organisation that looks at kickboxing and Muay Thai. So for them, they recognised and gave me my credentials.”

— Rico Verhoeven, via BBC Sport

What Rico Verhoeven said

Verhoeven holds the WBC bridgerweight title, a division introduced for fighters between cruiserweight and heavyweight. The WBC is the only major boxing sanctioning body that formally recognises kickboxing and Muay Thai achievements. Verhoeven competes at 123 kg and has moved into professional boxing after his kickboxing career.

What it moves

The comment positions Verhoeven's kickboxing pedigree as comparable to an elite boxing résumé when justifying his title status. Whether the wider boxing community accepts that equivalence will shape how his WBC reign is received. Verhoeven has not yet announced a first defence.

Source: bbc.com. Full Rico Verhoeven fight history and recent news at boxingnews.com.