The sanctioning body clarified its position before next week’s Egypt fight despite Rico Verhoeven having only one professional boxing bout
The WBA has confirmed Oleksandr Usyk’s May 23 fight against Rico Verhoeven will officially count as a heavyweight title defense despite Verhoeven’s limited professional boxing experience. The clarification ends speculation about whether the WBA belt would remain attached to the Egypt event.
The WBA had not publicly clarified whether its heavyweight title would also be at stake, leading to questions about Usyk’s championship status heading into the fight.
However, the organization has now confirmed that a Usyk victory will count as an official WBA heavyweight title defense.
“Should Usyk emerge victorious, the bout will officially count as a successful title defense,” the WBA revealed.
“If the champion were to lose, the WBA Championship Committee would then review his status and determine the next course of action regarding the heavyweight championship.”
The IBF has not publicly confirmed whether its own heavyweight title will remain attached to the contest. Frank Sanchez and Richard Torrez Jr. are scheduled to meet later this month in an IBF heavyweight eliminator.
Verhoeven, a longtime kickboxing champion, has not been confirmed as eligible to win the WBA belt itself despite the title being attached to the fight for Usyk.
The Dutchman’s only recorded professional boxing match came more than a decade ago against Janos Finfera.
The WBA also stated that if Verhoeven were to defeat Usyk, he would become eligible to enter the organization’s heavyweight rankings following a review by its championship committee.