Rico Verhoeven targets biggest career payday yet against Usyk

After dominating kickboxing for more than a decade, the longtime GLORY heavyweight champion is preparing for the biggest gamble of his career: a boxing match with undefeated heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk. A real one. Big arena, global attention, and reportedly close to €20 million waiting for Verhoeven once the first bell rings.

Not bad for a man who already conquered kickboxing years ago.

Rico admits boxing changes everything

Verhoeven has spent most of his career controlling distance with low kicks, knees, and pressure combinations. Strip all that away and suddenly the Dutch star enters unfamiliar territory.

“You stand differently, you move differently,” Verhoeven admitted recently. “It’s a huge adjustment.”

And he’s right.

Inside the boxing gym, even small habits betray kickboxers. The stance sits narrower. The weight distribution changes. Defensively, there’s nowhere to hide when punches start flying in tight exchanges. I watched Verhoeven work pads in Rotterdam last year before a media session and one thing stood out immediately: his discipline. He repeats movements obsessively until they feel natural. Coaches barely need to raise their voice.

That mentality is why people around him believe this experiment isn’t just a publicity stunt.

Still, Usyk is a different animal.

The Ukrainian southpaw enters any fight as one of the sharpest technicians in combat sports. The former undisputed cruiserweight champion moved up and dismantled heavyweight elites with footwork that almost looks casual. According to the latest Ring Magazine heavyweight rankings, he still sits firmly at the top of the division.

The risk is enormous

There’s confidence coming from Verhoeven’s camp, but nobody is pretending this is easy money.

Usyk doesn’t panic under pressure. He studies rhythm, breaks timing, then starts piling up rounds while opponents slowly unravel. Ask Tyson Fury about that. Ask Anthony Joshua too.

Rico Verhoeven, now 36, carries an entirely different style into the ring. He’s physically imposing at around 6-foot-5 with years of championship experience under bright lights, but pure boxing timing takes years to master. Sparring footage circulating online already shows him trying to shorten combinations and stay tighter defensively instead of fighting tall like he often does in kickboxing.

The intrigue comes from the unknown.

Can a decorated kickboxer trouble arguably the best boxer on the planet? Combat sports history usually says no. But heavyweight fights have strange energy around them. One clean shot changes moods fast.

A crossover fight that will pull huge numbers

The business side makes perfect sense.

Verhoeven remains one of Europe’s biggest combat sports names and Usyk’s profile exploded globally after back-to-back wins over Fury. Put both men on a fight poster and casual fans immediately stop scrolling.

GLORY has already leaned into crossover territory recently, and FSI247’s coverage of heavyweight superfights shows how much appetite exists for these matchups. The same thing happened when Verhoeven discussed his future outside kickboxing earlier this year.

For Verhoeven, this feels less about proving he’s a better boxer than Usyk.

It’s about testing himself one more time against the biggest name available — and cashing one of the largest checks of his career in the process.

Usyk, as always, looks completely unfazed. During a recent interview with ESPN boxing, he laughed off questions about crossover opponents and simply said he’ll fight anyone willing to step inside the ropes.

That invitation may cost Rico Verhoeven a few painful rounds.

Or make him twenty million richer.