Jason Statham breaks silence: The ‘diabolical’ ending to the fight I helped organise left me stunned
· Yahoo Sports
Jason Statham has given his take on the controversial finish to Saturday night’s high-profile boxing event.
The actor was instrumental in organising the crossover fight between Oleksandr Usyk and a kickboxing legend.
Visit afsport.lat for more information.
It was Statham who first introduced Rico Verhoeven to Turki Alalshikh, helping bring them together for what would become an ambitious plan. Their collaboration eventually led to a major boxing event held at the Pyramids of Giza in Cairo, Egypt.
In just his second professional boxing match, Rico Verhoeven came close to pulling off what would have been one of the sport’s most stunning upsets.
Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty ImagesJason Statham full of admiration for Rico Verhoeven after fight
Statham was right there at ringside as his friend appeared to be leading Oleksandr Usyk on points heading into the later rounds.
Even after being knocked down in the 11th, Verhoeven looked like he might see out the fight. But then came the controversy — stopped on his feet by a referee who seemed far too quick to intervene.
Replays clearly showed that the round had already ended before the stoppage call was made, only adding fuel to an already heated debate.
The former kickboxer then took aim at fans criticising Turki Alalshikh for introducing him to boxing and making these types of cross-discipline fights happen in Saudi Arabia.
Statham took to social media post-fight, sending a supportive message that was shared widely by followers.
“RICO! You did it, brother,” he wrote on Instagram. “An absolute bombshell performance. ROBBED of the chance to finish. A diabolical stoppage at the bell before the final round itself.”
“Respect to @usykaa as he is without doubt one of the greatest fighters of ALL TIME!! 🙌 But last night was your night, brother. You KILLED IT, and NO ONE saw it coming! 👊”
“A massive thank you to His Excellency @turki for putting on this major spectacle at the pyramids of Egypt! Without you, these fights don’t happen.”
Rico Verhoeven plans to appeal his first boxing loss
Rico Verhoeven kept his composure during his post-fight interview in the ring. But after a bit of time backstage, he realised just how poor the referee’s decision was.
Verhoeven then announced he would be appealing the loss to Usyk, feeling the stoppage was unjustified.
“They stopped the fight after the bell. I think we’re just going to go ahead and file an appeal because this makes no sense,” the 37-year-old said.
“When the referee intervened, I wasn’t dazed or anything like that. I looked at him, thinking, ‘Why are you stopping it?’ We were so close to making it to the end. It’s totally absurd. The referee must be aware of what he’s doing.
“Of course, mistakes happen, but he needs to admit his error. They should review the footage and declare the fight a ‘no contest’ or go to the judges’ scorecards. And if they went to the cards, at that point I was ahead on points.”
Read more: