Wardley shared his reaction when the matchup was confirmed.
“Yeah, look, I think it was the same as kind of the rest of the boxing world, it was quite underwhelming.”
He expected the undisputed champion to face an active professional boxer rather than a crossover opponent.
“I even said it myself, I understand that he’s kind of earned the right to do what you want, but I at least expected it to be some sort of active boxer, someone of some caliber, of a professional boxer.”
Wardley acknowledged he does not follow kickboxing closely but still anticipated a traditional heavyweight challenger.
“Not to say I don’t actually know much about Verhoeven in terms of a kickboxer, what his quality level is.”
The British heavyweight also addressed the WBC belt being attached to the bout.
“Is it particularly fair? Is Verhoeven ranked anywhere in the WBC? I don’t know. Or was he previously? I don’t think so.”
Wardley said the situation reflects the unpredictable nature of the sport.
“But it is what it is, unfortunately. The game is the game. Boxing will always be boxing.”
He added that heavyweight matchmaking often shifts quickly and rarely follows early expectations.
“In boxing, you just never know, anything could happen. Because look, from one month we thought it was me, the next month we thought it was Wilder, a month after that we thought it was Andy Ruiz, and now it turns out to be kickboxer Verhoeven.”
Wardley said the only approach is to concentrate on his own career while waiting to see how the heavyweight division develops.
“So all I stay focused on is my career, me achieving, winning, looking good, and then hopefully that fight comes around.”
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