Jason Statham Helped Create Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven Fight

A personal introduction connected Verhoeven with Turki Alalshikh and opened a path to a WBC title fight

Jason Statham helped connect Rico Verhoeven with Turki Alalshikh, opening the door to Oleksandr Usyk defending his WBC heavyweight title against the kickboxing champion on April 11 in Giza. The fight began not through rankings or sanctioning body orders but through a personal introduction linking Verhoeven with Turki Alalshikh.

The unusual origin of the fight was detailed by Ariel Helwani during his show.

“This someway, somehow, got to Jason Statham,” Helwani said via The Ariel Helwani Show. “Jason Statham is a very good friend of Rico Verhoeven. Jason Statham is also a very good friend of Turki Alalshikh. Jason Statham pitched Turki Alalshikh Rico Verhoeven.”

Helwani added that Alalshikh initially did not know who Verhoeven was.

“Jason Statham pitched Turki Alalshikh Rico Verhoeven,” Helwani said. “Turki Alalshikh was not familiar with Rico Verhoeven. And Jason Statham said, ‘This is the guy. This is my boy.’”

That introduction created the first link. Once the two sides were connected, discussions about possible fights followed.

Verhoeven had already stepped away from his long reign as GLORY heavyweight champion and began looking at crossover opportunities. Early talks explored a possible MMA bout with Francis Ngannou, and the UFC also showed interest.

According to Helwani, the promotion even presented a financial offer.

“The UFC offered him actually pretty good money,” Helwani said, though Verhoeven ultimately declined.

Attention then shifted toward boxing. A January fight with Anthony Joshua circulated in early discussions before plans moved again. The Statham introduction remained the key piece because it created a direct relationship between Verhoeven’s side and Alalshikh.

Helwani explained how the Usyk matchup eventually surfaced.

“They still have this deal, and they still want to make a deal with Rico Verhoeven,” Helwani said. “So they say, ‘Okay, what’s the next best thing? Let’s go to Oleksandr Usyk.’ And so that’s how this whole thing got made.”

The heavyweight order remains intact. Agit Kabayel still holds the WBC mandatory position, and the sanctioning body will expect the champion to address that obligation after this voluntary defense.