The reigning WBC, WBA, IBF, and The Ring boxing Heavyweight Champion Oleksandr Usyk is taking on former GLORY Heavyweight Champion Rico Verhoeven. This bout is the Main Event of today’s Glory in Giza boxing card taking place at the Pyramids of Giza in Giza, Egypt.
Check out my best bet for the WBC Heavyweight Championship fight between Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven.
Oleksandr Usyk to Win In Rounds 7-12 (+230)
Verhoeven has a 66-10 record in kickboxing and has won 22 consecutive fights, with his last loss coming in 2015. He is a former GLORY kickboxing Heavyweight Champion and one of the greatest fighters in that sport’s history. But kickboxing is not boxing. In Boxing, Verhoeven is a novice, and that will likely not lead to success against the world’s greatest heavyweight boxer.
Usyk, 39, is 24-0 with 15 knockouts and is arguably the No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter in boxing. Over the last five years, Usyk has beaten Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, and Daniel Dubois twice each. Without a clear No. 1 contender at Heavyweight, Usyk decided to take on Verhoeven in a one-of-a-kind matchup. On Friday, Usyk weighed in at 233.3 pounds, the heaviest of his career.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, Usyk is a massive -2500 favorite with Verhoeven being a +1100 underdog. This fight has an over/under of 5.5 rounds, with the over being -125 and the under being -110. The defending champion is -600 to win by KO/TKO/DQ. Since Usyk is such a big favorite, let’s look at a different way to back him. He is coming off a fifth-round knockout, but his three finishes before that were in Rounds 7-12. Usually, Usyk likes to feel out his opponent throughout the first few rounds before implementing his game plan. The longer this fight lasts, the more it favors Usyk, as he has far more boxing experience.
