The sparring footage shows Verhoeven on the front foot from the start. He walked Fury down, ignored the constant feints, and kept working to get close enough to land. Fury circled, jabbed, and flashed that Ali-style movement from the camp while Verhoeven continued stepping in without hesitation.
He also connected. Several right hands landed clean, and at times, Fury tied him up to slow the advance. That willingness to push through the movement and accept the risk separated Verhoeven’s approach from what was seen in Düsseldorf later that year.
The comparison with Klitschko’s performance later that year is unavoidable. Klitschko approached the Düsseldorf fight cautiously, circling and waiting while rarely committing to sustained combinations. Fury disrupted the rhythm with movement and activity and secured a decision in a bout defined by limited engagement. The champion never asserted himself with authority.
Verhoeven’s instinct in the gym was different. He moved forward, tested range, and accepted exchanges rather than conceding initiative. That disposition now becomes part of the discussion because he is scheduled to challenge Usyk on May 23 at the Pyramids of Giza in a WBC-sanctioned voluntary defense. Verhoeven enters without a professional boxing record, and the sanctioning framework permits champions to select voluntary opponents outside the mandatory rotation, which is how this bout received approval.
Usyk is simply the more polished fighter. He’s benefited from a long amateur professional career, facing many high-level fighters. Rico doesn’t have any of that going for him and will need to focus on using his power and toughness to try to win.
If Verhoeven stays on the outside, he’ll get picked apart by Usyk. His only real option is to get in Usyk’s face from the first bell and deal with the punches he’ll take to get there. While that aggressive style can create openings and turn the fight into a scrap, it is exhausting to keep up that kind of intensity for half an hour against a champion who is used to that level of fatigue.
Usyk is the favorite because he has the stamina to outlast anyone. Verhoeven’s shot at an upset depends entirely on how much impact he can make in the first few minutes and if he can still throw with power once his lungs start to burn in the later rounds.
UNSEEN FOOTAGE: With Rico Verhoeven set to fight Oleksandr Usyk for the WBC heavyweight title, relive when Verhoeven sparred Tyson Fury in the build-up to his triumph over Wladimir Klitschko back in 2015 💥 pic.twitter.com/lsLZXQzzns
— Sky Sports Boxing (@SkySportsBoxing) March 3, 2026
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