{Rico Verhoeven} walked into the Pyramids of Giza on May 23 and surprised the boxing world. In only his second professional boxing bout, the Dutch kickboxing legend took unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk to deep waters before the referee stopped the fight with one second remaining in the 11th round, a call that sparked immediate controversy.
At the time of the stoppage, two of the three judges had the bout scored 95-95, with the third giving Verhoeven a 96-94 edge. Usyk, ranked No. 1 pound-for-pound by multiple outlets heading into the fight, had entered as a heavy favorite. The champion ultimately retained his WBC heavyweight title, but it was a closer fight than almost anyone had predicted.
Two fighters who know Verhoeven better than most had plenty to say about it, and both were in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, ahead of SENSHI 31, the international fight gala taking place Saturday, May 30, at the Ancient Theatre of Plovdiv.
Benjamin Adegbuyi
{Benjamin Adegbuyi}, who has shared the ring with Verhoeven twice under the GLORY banner and is set to compete at SENSHI 31 against Bulgaria's Daniel Dinev, was direct about how he felt watching the fight. "I was proud, man," he said. "Proud that one of us kickboxers stepped in there with one of the best to ever do it in boxing. And in my opinion, he was winning the fight."
Adegbuyi has personal reasons to feel validated. At GLORY 22 in Lille in June 2015, the Romanian-born heavyweight gave Verhoeven a difficult first round before the champion wore him down and took a unanimous decision, two judges scored it 49-47. Adegbuyi was competitive again in their December 2015 rematch at GLORY 26 Amsterdam. He said watching Verhoeven against Usyk triggered something. "It gives me a lot of motivation and satisfaction," he told us. "Not only seeing Rico do so well, but I've also experienced a lot of boxers myself."
Among them, it turns out, was Tyson Fury. Adegbuyi revealed he spent four weeks as a sparring partner during Fury's preparation for his 2015 fight against Wladimir Klitschko. "He's one of the most talented and awkward boxers I've ever sparred with or seen," Adegbuyi said. "Even though he's such a big guy, you still can't touch him sometimes. I was struggling to touch him." He also sparred Derek Chisora and Romanian heavyweights including Bogdan Dinu during his career.
Adegbuyi's read on Verhoeven's performance came with a touch of confidence. Asked whether it gave him satisfaction knowing he was competitive against a man who took Usyk to the brink, he didn't hesitate. "Hundred percent," he said.
Semmy Schilt
Four-time K-1 World Grand Prix champion {Semmy Schilt}, who defeated Verhoeven in the quarterfinals of the GLORY 4 Tokyo Heavyweight Grand Slam tournament in December 2012, had a more measured take. "It was a great performance from Rico," Schilt said. "Maybe not the best boxing fight I've ever seen, but he's the best-paid kickboxer in the world, so what he's doing is very good. He's like the Mayweather of kickboxing."
Verhoeven held the GLORY heavyweight title for over twelve years, made 13 successful defenses, and vacated the belt in November 2025 before turning his attention to boxing. He had a 66-10 kickboxing record entering the Usyk fight, with his only previous boxing appearance a knockout win over Janos Finfera back in April 2014.
When the topic of Schilt's own win over Verhoeven came up, the Dutchman took the opposite tone from Adegbuyi on the competitive angle. "I even texted Rico a message saying I was proud of him," Schilt said. "I didn't like that he lost, because now I'm not the only one he lost to. But when you get further in the game, at some point you're going to lose. It is what it is, and that's also what he always says. He will get up for the next thing."
Both fighters are in Plovdiv for SENSHI 31 Gladiators, which takes place Saturday evening at the Ancient Theatre, one of the most distinctive open-air venues in European combat sports. The card is headlined by a lightweight grand prix and features three international super fights, including Adegbuyi's own bout at heavyweight.
Source: beyondkick.com