Wilder out, Verhoeven in.
Oleksandr Usyk will defend his WBC heavyweight title against former GLORY kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven on May 23 at Pyramids of Giza in Egypt. Their “Glory in Giza” boxing showdown will stream exclusively on DAZN pay-per-view (PPV).
Today’s booking reaffirmed what we already knew about the Paramount+ era: you can’t attract marquee names (like these Netflix headliners) without PPV points on the backend, which is probably why Verhoeven balked at the offer to fight Derrick Lewis at UFC 324 earlier this year in Las Vegas.
“I spent twelve years as the undisputed heavyweight kickboxing champion and accomplished everything I set out to accomplish,” Verhoeven, 36, said in today’s release. “But staying at the top for that long didn’t take away from the hunger, it strengthened it. Usyk is the undisputed in boxing. That’s the kind of challenge that motivated me. Undisputed versus undisputed.”
Fans blasted the matchmaking on social media.
“I truly respect people who reach the very top in their sport,” the 39 year-old Usyk added. “Rico is one of them. A powerful athlete and a great champion. Being a champion isn’t just about belts.”
He’s right — it’s also about the money.
