Oleksandr Usyk stops Rico Verhoeven in the 11th round of WBC heavyweight title fight in Egypt
Ukraine's unbeaten heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk defeated Dutch former kickboxer Rico Verhoeven by stoppage at 2:59 of round 11 in a WBC title fight at the Pyramids of Egypt on Saturday. Verhoeven, in only his second professional boxing match after 12 years away from the sport, unexpectedly competed closely with Usyk, with scorecards tied or favoring Verhoeven entering the final round. Usyk ended the fight with a right uppercut that dropped Verhoeven, with the referee stopping the bout to avoid further punishment.
No left-right split here
Coverage clusters in the center and international press. Here is each take as it stands.
“Usyk avoids shock defeat with 11th round stoppage of Verhoeven - Reuters”
“Usyk avoids shock defeat with 11th-round stoppage of Verhoeven”