Rico Verhoeven calls himself 'uncrowned king' after Usyk loss

Rico Verhoeven believes his competitive showing against Oleksandr Usyk earned him a place at the top of the heavyweight division, despite falling short in an 11th-round stoppage at The Pyramids of Giza on May 23.

The kickboxing legend, speaking on The Ring's "Inside The Ring" show Monday, said he's ready to face any of boxing's elite heavyweights after nearly pulling off what would have been one of the sport's biggest upsets. "I'm ready for whoever," Verhoeven told the programme, per The Ring. "I'm here to stay. I think we showcased that we might be the best. I feel like I'm the uncrowned king."

Controversial stoppage mars Verhoeven's debut at elite level

The 37-year-old Dutchman, making just his second professional boxing appearance, was caught by a right uppercut with roughly 25 seconds left in the 11th round. He beat the count on shaky legs but referee Mark Lyson waved off the contest as the bell sounded to end the frame. Two judges had the fight even at 95-95, while a third scored it 96-94 for Verhoeven. The former Glory Kickboxing champion, who climbed off the canvas multiple times during his 12-year reign, questioned the decision to stop the bout with the round ending. "I came back from worse," he said. "I already heard the click, so I knew the round was almost over, and then he jumps in. To me, it was a premature stoppage."

A rematch with Usyk will reportedly have to wait. Agit Kabayel, ranked second by The Ring at heavyweight, is due to face the unified champion in Germany later this year as the mandatory challenger for Usyk's WBC belt. Turki Alalshikh, who owns The Ring and chairs Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority, has indicated he wants that fight settled before revisiting Verhoeven.

Verhoeven maintains he has more to show in a potential second meeting. "I used a few tools against Usyk, but I have way more tools to use," he said. "In the next fight, I'm going to show you something different."

Source: ringmagazine.com