Usyk survives scare with 11th-round stoppage of Verhoeven at Pyramids

Oleksandr Usyk defended his WBC heavyweight title but only after surviving an almighty scare with an 11th-round stoppage of kickboxer Rico Verhoeven in Giza.

Verhoeven came within touching distance of staging one of boxing's greatest upsets in just his second professional bout, bullying and overpowering an off‑colour Usyk.

The unbeaten unified heavyweight champion trailed on the scorecards heading into the penultimate round but landed a crisp right uppercut to transform the complexion of the contest.

It sent the towering Verhoeven to the canvas for the first time before a barrage of punches from Usyk saw the referee controversially wave it off at 2:59 seconds of round 11.

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