Unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk will defend his WBC heavyweight title in opposition to former kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven on Saturday, Might 23 on the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, it was introduced Friday by His Excellency Turki Alalshikh and Ring Journal. The occasion, branded “Glory in Giza,” will stream globally and completely on DAZN.
The bout marks the primary skilled boxing occasion held on the historical Egyptian landmark and the primary time Usyk, who has fought throughout seven international locations throughout his profession, will compete in North Africa.
Usyk Continues Heavyweight Reign
Usyk (24-0, 15 KOs) returns to the ring for the primary time since his complete fifth-round knockout of Daniel Dubois in July 2025, a combat that noticed him reclaim the undisputed heavyweight championship. The 39-year-old Ukrainian had beforehand unified the division with back-to-back victories over Tyson Fury in Riyadh in 2024 — a split-decision win adopted by a unanimous-decision triumph within the rematch.
With the WBO title since vacated, Usyk enters the Verhoeven combat because the WBC, WBA, and IBF heavyweight champion. A combat with Deontay Wilder had been extensively mentioned, however Wilder opted to face Derek Chisora as an alternative, leaving Usyk to pursue an unconventional problem.
“I actually respect individuals who attain the very high of their sport,” Usyk mentioned in a press release. “Rico is one in all them — a robust athlete and an awesome champion. Being a champion isn’t nearly belts. It’s about years of laborious work, self-discipline, and perception. I respect his journey — he’s actually the King of Kickboxing. However that is boxing — a special recreation, with its personal guidelines and its personal kings.”
Verhoeven: A Kickboxing Legend Steps Into Boxing
Verhoeven, 36, is extensively considered one of many biggest heavyweight kickboxers within the historical past of the game. The Dutchman held the Glory Kickboxing heavyweight title for over 4,200 days — greater than 11 consecutive years — and compiled a document of 66-10 with 21 knockouts throughout 76 skilled kickboxing bouts. He holds Glory information for many wins in title bouts (14), most consecutive title defenses (13), most wins total (28), and the longest profitable streak (27).
Verhoeven made his last kickboxing protection in June 2025, defeating former two-time Glory gentle heavyweight champion Artem Vakhitov by unanimous determination at Glory 100. He introduced his departure from the game the next November.
His boxing expertise, nevertheless, is restricted. Verhoeven’s lone skilled boxing bout got here in April 2014, a second-round knockout of Janos Finfera at Combine Combat Gala XV in Darmstadt, Germany. He additionally holds a 1-0 MMA document, ending Viktor Bogutzki by first-round TKO in 2015. However he has not competed below skilled boxing guidelines in almost twelve years.
“I spent twelve years because the undisputed heavyweight kickboxing champion and completed all the things I got down to accomplish,” Verhoeven mentioned. “However staying on the high for that lengthy didn’t take away the starvation, it strengthened it. I wasn’t in search of consolation, so I began in search of the best problem obtainable in one other world. Usyk is undisputed in boxing. That’s the form of problem that motivates me. Undisputed versus undisputed. The perfect dealing with the very best.”
A Historic Setting for a Crossover Bout
The Pyramids of Giza location provides spectacle to a combat that already carries appreciable novelty. Boxing has an extended historical past of staging main occasions in unconventional settings — from the “Rumble within the Jungle” in Kinshasa in 1974 to the “Thrilla in Manila” a yr later — however this marks the primary time a world title combat will happen at one of many Seven Wonders of the Historical World.
For Usyk, the crossover nature of the bout invitations comparisons to Floyd Mayweather’s 2017 combat in opposition to UFC star Conor McGregor, one other contest that pitted boxing’s institution in opposition to an elite fighter from a special self-discipline. The distinction right here is that the WBC heavyweight title — probably the most prestigious prize within the sport’s marquee division — will likely be on the road, lending legitimacy the Mayweather-McGregor bout didn’t carry.
Additional particulars, together with ticket info and the undercard, are anticipated to be introduced within the coming weeks. As reported by ESPN, the combat would be the newest in a sequence of bold boxing occasions orchestrated by Alalshikh, who has quickly turn out to be probably the most influential determine within the sport’s international panorama.
Whether or not “Glory in Giza” produces a aggressive combat or a one-sided showcase for Usyk, it guarantees to be one of the crucial visually putting occasions in boxing historical past — and one other chapter within the profession of a champion who has left remarkably few bins unchecked.
