Teddy Atlas Blasts Referee Over Oleksandr Usyk-Rico Verhoeven Ending

Atlas questioned the referee’s timing after the bell, but still believed Usyk was heading toward a stoppage win

Teddy Atlas believes referee Mark Lyson made the wrong call by stopping Oleksandr Usyk’s heavyweight fight with Rico Verhoeven after the bell sounded in round 11. Atlas still admitted Usyk likely would have finished Verhoeven in the final round after the champion finally broke through late in the fight.

Posting on social media, Atlas criticized both the officiating and the television production during the closing sequence.

The controversy has fueled calls from some fans and fighters for a rematch, though Usyk’s attention could quickly move toward WBC mandatory challenger Agit Kabayel after the victory.

Atlas is one of several well-known boxing figures who have questioned the timing of the stoppage over the last 24 hours.

Yes terrible job by ref stopping fight after the bell, also horrible TV production not showing a clock. Usyk would have stopped him in 12th though. #usykvsverhoeven pic.twitter.com/p7S7ZoezsI

— Teddy Atlas (@TeddyAtlasReal) May 23, 2026

Mark Lyson absolutely did not blow this call. Let’s look at what actually happened in that ring. A referee has exactly one main job when a fighter is taking a beating: to protect the fighter. Rico Verhoeven was completely defenseless, lumbering around, and taking serious damage. Lyson is watching the fighter, not staring at a digital clock on a screen somewhere. He saw a man who could no longer defend himself and stepped in to save him from taking permanent damage.

The fact that Rico still looked completely concussed during the post-fight interview tells you everything you need to know. If a guy cannot even pull himself together minutes after the fight is over, he had zero business taking more punches. Giving him a 60-second rest before the 12th round was not going to magically cure a concussion or change the outcome.

Teddy Atlas loves to hyper-focus on the technicalities and the television production, but the reality inside the ropes is different. Lyson made a compassionate, correct boxing decision. He stopped a one-sided beating, and honestly, he probably saved Rico from an even worse knockout in the next round.

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