Usyk weighs in at career-heaviest for Verhoeven fight

Oleksandr Usyk tipped the scales at a career‑heaviest 16 stone six pounds ahead of Saturday's fight with kickboxer Rico Verhoeven at the Pyramids of Giza.

The unbeaten Ukrainian weighed in at 233.3 lbs but will still step into the ring considerably lighter than his opponent, who came in at 258.7 lbs at the weigh‑in.

Speaking after an intense stare-down, Usyk said: "Listen, he's a dangerous guy, he's undisputed. I'm not relaxed, he's a fighter. My concentration is 100 per cent."

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Verhoeven added: "The main emotion is finally we are here. It's been so long, six months of crazy hard work. We are writing history again here at the pyramids."

Usyk weighed 227 lbs for his last fight against Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium last July, and 226 lbs for his rematch against Tyson Fury in December 2024.

Usyk holds the WBC, WBA and IBF belts, but Verhoeven will only claim the WBC title with the unlikeliest of victories on Saturday, with the other sanctioning bodies set to declare their titles vacant should Usyk lose.

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A defeat for the champion would rank among the biggest upsets in boxing history, with many considering the fight a total mismatch.

Verhoeven, 37, has had only one professional boxing bout, and that was 12 years ago before he embarked on an 11‑year unbeaten run in kickboxing.

Usyk, an Olympic champion, is undefeated in 24 fights as a cruiserweight and heavyweight.

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Unbeaten Richard Torrez Jr, at 229.5 lbs, weighed almost 11 pounds lighter than Frank Sanchez, who hit 240.4 lbs, ahead of their IBF final eliminator to become mandatory challenger to Usyk.

England's Jack Catterall registered 146.8 lbs, narrowly above Shakhram Giyasov at 145.7 lbs, before their clash for the vacant WBA Regular welterweight title and a shot at Super champion Rolly Romero.

"We're locked in for the fight… I won't be denied tomorrow," Catterall said.

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England's Hamzah Sheeraz scaled 167.9 lbs, giving him a one‑pound edge over unbeaten German Alem Begic ahead of their WBO super-middleweight title fight.

"I'm ready to go… hopefully become the new champion of the world," Sheeraz said.