Surprise potential opponent suggested for heavyweight champion.
Oleksandr Usyk recently turned 39 years old.
In the real world, this is not old by any means. But for an athlete, it’s around the age that retirement becomes more than a consideration. Because it’s at this age that a fighter’s reflexes tend to slow, their footwork stops being so nimble, and all of a sudden, they can’t perform quite like they used to.
When it comes to heavyweights, this is reflected in the number of fighters who have still been at world level around this age.
Jersey Joe Walcott was 39 when he rematched Rocky Marciano, and he was dispatched in a round. The 41-year-old Archie Moore lasted eight rounds longer against Marciano, but lasted five against Floyd Patterson aged 42.
In more recent times, we saw Usyk’s Ukrainian compatriot Wladimir Klitschko reign as champion until he lost to Tyson Fury aged 39, then Anthony Joshua at 41.
Vitali Klitschko fared better, retiring as the reigning champion at 41 years of age. But though there are other examples (obligatory George Foreman mention), the fact is that most heavyweights–most fighters, for that matter–are already past their prime when they’re Usyk’s age.
Though we have yet to see a serious decline in the unified heavyweight champion, he does appear to be winding down. His entertaining of fights with Deontay Wilder and Andy Ruiz Jr. are evidence of this, but now an even more bizarre opponent has been suggested for his next fight.
In a post on his Twitter early Sunday, Riyadh Season head honcho Turki Alalshikh published a video of Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven knocking out Benjamin Adegbuyi in their rematch in 2015.
Above the video, the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority wrote, “I want to see him against Oleksandr Usyk”, accompanied by a Devil emoji.
Verhoeven was rumoured as a tune-up opponent for Anthony Joshua in 2026, which would purportedly have lead to the long-awaited Tyson Fury fight. However, given recent events involving Joshua’s recent car crash in Nigeria, it is unknown if he will ever fight again.
Verhoeven is a fighting machine. He has a kickboxing record of 66-10, and he is 1-0 in MMA and professional boxing each. He was the longest-reigning GLORY heavyweight champion in history, defending his title 13 successful times and going undefeated in his last 22 fights over more than ten years.
His quality as a fighter simply can’t be questioned, but fighting Usyk is an entirely different thing altogether.
For some fighters, aging is gradual and graceful. For others, it is sudden and very, very ugly.
Whichever it is for Usyk, would he accept a fight with the kickboxing master from the Netherlands?
Maybe.
Maybe.
I want to see him against Oleksandr Usyk 😈 pic.twitter.com/bCKvbh6xZ6
— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) February 1, 2026
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