6-month boxing transition camp
Rico used a full 6 months to transition from kickboxing stance to a proper boxing stance under trainer Peter Fury, calling it essential rewiring.
Snapshot · The Joe Rogan Experience
JRE MMA Show #183 with Rico Verhoeven
Explore episode
Aug 4, 2026
Where this was said
Fighting at the Pyramids: His Mother's Ghost and the Lights Turning On
At 46:54 · chapter starts 37:30
The conversation turns cinematic as Rico describes how the fight location came to him [1] — Rico Verhoeven "Rico's mother died during his fight camp. While clearing her house, his family found photos of her standing at the Egyptian pyramids from 3…" 1:06:00 . First: a WhatsApp photo. Then a video. Then the realization it was happening outdoors at the base of the Giza pyramids at night. Rico drew the Rumble in the Jungle comparison for the location alone — not to put himself in Ali's category — which some misread as ego. The real story is far more poignant: Rico's mother died during his fight camp. While cleaning out her house, his family found photos of her standing at those same pyramids 30 years earlier. Standing in front of the Sphinx before the fight, making the same photos his mother made decades prior, was a full-circle moment that gave him goosebumps. He punched the ground as part of the choreography, turned around, and the pyramids lit up for the first time that evening. He almost twisted an ankle jumping off steps he hadn't seen in the darkness, and the cameraman nearly missed him.
Moving Left: The One Tactical Idea That Changed Everything
Every heavyweight who faced Usyk tried to move to the right — straight into his power hand. Rico and Peter Fury identified the obvious solution: move left, away from the left hand, and smother him with size. It sounds simple. Nobody had done it. That one adjustment was the foundation of 10 dominant rounds.
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~10 rounds dominated vs Usyk
Rico Verhoeven dominated approximately 10 of 12 rounds against undisputed heavyweight boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk before a controversial post-bell stoppage.
Stopped after the bell
Rico's appeal confirmed the fight was stopped after the bell rang, and the ringside doctor found no concussion or disorientation — yet the result was never overturned.
Glory uses 5 judges vs boxing's 3
Glory Kickboxing uses 5 judges rather than boxing's 3, which Joe Rogan argues reduces the chance of a corrupt or incompetent minority swinging the result.
1 professional boxing match before Usyk
Rico Verhoeven had only one professional boxing match before fighting undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk for the WBC title.
15 years of boxing training
Despite having just one pro boxing match, Rico Verhoeven had been training boxing for 15 years alongside his kickboxing career.
75+ kickboxing fights in career
Rico Verhoeven has had approximately 75 professional kickboxing fights, giving him a massive combat sports experience advantage over pure boxers.
Kickboxing is #2 sport in Netherlands
Rico Verhoeven claimed kickboxing is the second most popular sport in the Netherlands, behind only soccer, yet it remains almost non-existent in the American market.
