Usyk spoke about his preparation for the fight with kickboxer Verhoeven: when the match

Ukrainian boxer Oleksandr Usyk spoke about his preparation for the match against Dutch kickboxer Rico Verhoeven, which is scheduled for May 2026. The fight has already been sanctioned by the World Boxing Council (WBC) and will have the status of a voluntary title defense. This is reported by Suspilne Sport.

Usyk vs Verhoeven: Ukrainian's preparation without compromises

According to Usyk, the training process does not change regardless of the opponent. He emphasized that he approaches every fight with maximum seriousness.

«My preparation does not change; I prepare for every opponent as seriously as possible. I am training against myself; I am my toughest opponent», — noted the boxer.

Usyk also added that the load is even increasing:

• training remains intense

• distances are increasing, not decreasing

• no compromises in the preparation process.

Oleksandr Usyk emphasized that even recovery days are used productively, particularly for maintaining physical shape and working on cardiovascular systems.

Usyk vs Verhoeven: date, place and possible changes

The fight between Usyk and Verhoeven is scheduled for May 23, 2026. It is planned to be held in Egypt against the backdrop of the Giza pyramids.

At the same time, due to the security situation in the region, the Ukrainian team is considering alternative options for holding the match. Usyk himself noted that he fully trusts this issue to the management:

• the team is working on a possible Plan B

• the boxer is focused solely on training

• organizational issues are handled by his entourage

«The team is 100% considering Plan B, but I am not thinking about this at all. I am just training», — Usyk emphasized.

Recall that this will be the first fight for the Ukrainian since July 2025, when he defeated British boxer Daniel Dubois and became the absolute world champion for the second time. Later, Usyk vacated the WBO belt, and the status of absolute champion was lost.

Earlier we wrote that the management of FC "Polissya" from Zhytomyr appealed to the Ukrainian Football Association (UAF) with a demand to lifetime ban referee Denys Shurman from refereeing. This appeal was signed by club president Hennadii Butkevych and first vice-president Oleksandr Usyk.