The end of the fight held in the Pyramids of Giza continues to generate reactions in the sports environment. The fighter Rico Verhoeven announced that his work team will present a legal appeal to question the intervention of referee Mark Lyson against Oleksandr Usyk.

The 37-year-old athlete offered a performance that complicated the Ukrainian champion for most of the contest.

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Despite having only one background in paid boxing, the challenger managed to establish constant pressure that kept him with even numbers on the scorecards.

The moment of controversy in the eleventh round

The situation changed when Usyk landed an uppercut that dropped his opponent. After exceeding the protection count and resuming the actions, the third on the surface stopped the confrontation with just one second left on the official clock.

The challenger's team argues that the fight was stopped illegally. In an interview with Boxing News, Rico Verhoeven explained his position: "They stopped the fight after the bell rang. The bell rang and then they stopped the fight. I think we're going to appeal, because this doesn't make sense."

Arguments to demand review of the ruling

The former kickboxing champion maintains that he had the physical capacity to continue into the twelfth round. He told Boxing News that after hearing the final ten-second signal, his focus was to keep his guard up and continue moving.

In his statements to the same source, Rico Verhoeven detailed his reaction to the referee's decision: "That's why, when the referee came in, I wasn't dazzled or anything. I was looking at the referee. Why did you stop? We're almost there."

The athlete believes that the ring authority must recognize the miscalculation with the stopwatch. According to Rico Verhoeven's vision shared with the specialized media, the result should be declared void or defined by the judges' cards.

The general analysis of its performance in Egypt

Beyond the administrative dispute, the athlete valued the execution of the work plan carried out by his corner. The strategy implemented managed to neutralize several offensive tools of the unified monarch, an unusual fact in Usyk's recent defenses.

"We had a brilliant strategy and it worked. I am very proud and very happy. I had not seen any boxer do that until tonight," Rico Verhoeven concluded in his speech.

The division now awaits the verdict of this appeal and evaluates public requests for a possible direct rematch.