Roy Jones Jr has given his view on Oleksandr Usyk‘s somewhat controversial win over Rico Verhoeven back in May.
Usyk is a former undisputed cruiserweight turned two-time undisputed heavyweight champion, so he was widely expected to deal easily with the former kickboxing champion turned 1-0 boxing novice, Verhoeven.
What instead transpired was a close fight over 11 rounds, with Verhoeven boxing remarkably well and landing plenty of shots. He was ahead on many peoples’ cards at the end of the 11th round when he began to be caught and was stopped, some say prematurely, by the referee.
Speaking to Betting Lounge, former multi-weight ruler Jones Jr reflected on Usyk’s below-par showing against Verhoeven.
“Is Usyk over the hill? No. Not at all. It’s about Rico’s herky-jerky style. That’s all that was. Rico’s performance made Usyk look like that, no question. I’m not going to say it was a bad stoppage.
“I thought he could have let it go a little longer, but the ref was probably trying to look out for the guy. He probably thought the guy was done, and he did what he thought was best. It happens.”
Because some believe the fight was stopped too soon, there is plenty of clamour for a rematch, which Usyk may well take in order to put the result beyond all doubt.
However, if the Ukrainian does opt for that route, he will be forced to sacrifice the WBC belt, having been ordered to face mandatory challenger Agit Kabayel next.
