MEPB dismisses Verhoeven appeal against Usyk stoppage

The Middle East Professional Boxing Commission has dismissed Rico Verhoeven's appeal against his May stoppage loss to Oleksandr Usyk, ruling the referee acted within his authority despite evidence the fight was waved off after the bell sounded.

Verhoeven challenged the result of the heavyweight title bout in Egypt, arguing that referee Mark Lyson called a halt to the contest in the 11th round only after the official bell had rung. The commission acknowledged that detail but found no grounds to overturn the outcome, according to documents obtained by BBC Sport.

Referee authority and fighter safety uphold result

The panel noted that Lyson told the hearing he had made his decision before the bell. "I decided I wanted to stop the contest... I had already seen enough," the referee stated, per the ruling. The commission emphasized that under its rules a referee holds sole authority to end a bout at any point, with no distinction between stoppages during a round or between rounds.

Official timekeeper Brad William flagged a timing discrepancy, but the commission dismissed it as procedural rather than substantive. "Even if the physical wave-off occurred fractionally after the bell, this is, at its highest, a procedural timing discrepancy," the ruling stated. The panel said it could only reverse the result if it found bad faith, corruption, or arbitrariness on Lyson's part.

All three judges had the fight level or in Verhoeven's favor at the time of the stoppage, with cards reading 95-95, 95-95, and 96-94 for the kickboxing legend in just his second pro boxing appearance. Verhoeven, 37, has called for an immediate rematch with Usyk.

Source: bbc.com