Will Hrgovic be Facing Verhoeven in his First Defence of the IBF Heavyweight Title?

Before May of this year, Rico Verhoeven had only stepped into a boxing ring on one occasion, and that was back in 2014 against a. little-known opponent called Janos Finfera.

Strange then that his next boxing match would be twelve years later against none other than the man recognised as the number one heavyweight in the world, Oleksandr Usyk.

There was an uproar in the boxing world when the Dutchman was announced as Usyk's opponent. Surely there were more deserving challengers? A man with virtually no boxing experience couldn't possibly produce a credible challenge to the all-conquering Ukrainian?

But Rico did more than give a good account of himself that night at the Pyramids. He completely outboxed Usyk for the majority of the rounds and appeared to be clearly ahead, before being stopped in the 11th round. Many fans, myself included, felt the stoppage was unfair. Verhoeven had been dropped and was fatigued, but seemed to have survived Usyk's attack as the round was ending. 

Out of all of Usyk's opponents at heavyweight, it was Rico who came closest to beating him, and his reward for that extraordinary performance is a fight with the newly-crowned IBF champion, Filip Hrgovic. 

But how did Verhoeven find himself in a ring with Usyk in the first place? Well it didn't hurt that his exploits as a kickboxer had made him one of the most famous names in combat sports. It also didn't hurt that his close friend Jason Statham was pushing hard to get him the opportunity. 

Verhoeven was trained by Tyson Fury's uncle, Peter who devised the perfect strategy for befuddling the Ukrainian master. Peter will, I imagine, equip him with different, but no less effective tools against Hrgovic.

Hrgovic is still on cloud nine after upsetting the odds against the 21 year-old sensation, Moses Itauma in the Brit's own backyard in London in August.

Filip returned to his Croatian homeland as a hero. He has even been honoured by the President.

Some say Verhoeven only looked good in May because Usyk hadn't taken him seriously. Others say Usyk had grown old overnight. But I think the Dutchman found the perfect style to disrupt Usyk's rhythm.

Rico gave everything that night and put on a great show, so I think that when it comes to it, boxing fans won't complain too loudly if he gets a shot at Hrgovic.

Once again, there are more deserving challengers. The Cuban southpaw, Frank Sanchez has been waiting for some time for his mandatory challenge for the IBF title, and won't be happy to be passed over again. But as always in boxing, money talks, and Rico's star profile allows him to jump the queue.