Mark Lyson stands by his controversial decision to stop Usyk vs. Verhoeven.
It has been almost a month since Oleksandr Usyk and Rico Verhoeven fought, and questions surrounding the events of that night are still being asked.
There were two big takeaways following the conclusion of the headline fight. The first, of course, was that Usyk looked exceptionally beatable against a man who has made his trade in kickboxing.
The second regarded the stoppage, the one that ensured the bout would forever be an 11th-round TKO win for Usyk despite the trouble he had faced and how controversial the referee’s decision was.
There are a number of theories as to why Usyk performed the way he did, but the ending of the fight itself became just as much a topic of discussion.
Verhoeven’s team filed a formal protest over the stoppage, the result of which arrived yesterday. As was expected by boxing fans, the result remained.
One main point of Verhoeven’s argument was that the fight had been stopped after the bell to end the round had sounded, something which referee Mark Lyson claimed he hadn’t heard.
But in the official ruling by the Middle East Professional Boxing Commission, it was also claimed that Lyson stated, “I decided I wanted to stop the contest … I had already seen enough.”
According to the MEPBC, what took place in May simply doesn’t meet their criteria to overturn an official decision. Instances of a fight’s outcome being overruled are practically unheard-of throughout the entirety of boxing history.
So, at the end of the day, the record will always show that the fight was an official defeat for the legendary Dutchman, but talks of a rematch with Usyk have also ensured that Verhoeven is very likely to get his chance at taking revenge.
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