Rico Verhoeven has been untouchable in the kickboxing world for nearly a decade.
The heavyweight division across combat sports is hot in 2024. There are questions aplenty about who the very best is, and no matter where you look, there are several intriguing talents. Take the Netherlands’ GLORY Kickboxing king Verhoeven as a prime example.
Verhoeven, 35, has won 20 consecutive fights dating back to 2015. In 74 kickboxing appearances, the Dutchman has won 64 and seeks his next in a rematch with Levi Rigters this December.
After that? A new and exciting possibility could await.
The MMA return of lineal heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou absorbed the spotlight this past weekend, and for good reason — Ngannou was welcomed back from a near three-year layoff to take on PFL’s giant 2023 season champion Renan Ferreira. By earning a first-round knockout, Ngannou spectacularly silenced any doubters who expected him to flounder off the heels of two boxing matches.
Although the fight was Ngannou’s first in the PFL, his future options feel limited. If a cross-promotional matchup could be made between two titans like Ngannou and Verhoeven, they’re all for it.
“I love the idea,” Verhoeven said on Uncrowned’s “The Ariel Helwani Show.” “Actually, I’ve been thinking of a crossover, or whatever, for quite some time now. So, I love the idea because it’s a new challenge. Not that I’m done with challenges within GLORY, but I got an amazing win streak and title defense streak. Earlier this year, we won an amazing tournament. But yeah, I’m open to challenges. When we’re talking about the baddest on the planet, let’s find out who it is.”
Ngannou and Verhoeven aren’t strangers to each other. Between Ngannou’s coach Eric Nicksick and Verhoeven, they’re coincidentally close enough to be considered friends. That doesn’t mean a lot of money can’t be made with a big-time fight.
Nicksick revealed on Tuesday’s “The Ariel Helwani Show” that Ngannou and Verhoeven have trained together. It wasn’t a strong glimpse into what a fight of any variation might look like due to a Verhoeven injury, but the kickboxing champion shed some light on the experience.
“We got approached by his team earlier for preparation, but for some kind of reason we couldn’t make it happen,” Verhoeven said. “Now I was in the U.S. anyway, so we flew over to Vegas and we had a nice training session. We moved around. He was preparing for a fight but he also just had an operation. I just came back from the eye injury so we didn’t spar, but we just threw around some punches, I gave him some kickboxing notes and that’s it. We had fun. Amazing guy. Eric is an amazing guy too. We clicked.”
The combat sports world has been Ngannou’s oyster since he parted ways with the UFC early last year. Freedom and flexibility were the biggest sticking factors for the former UFC heavyweight champion, who wanted to start boxing professionally.
Like Ngannou, Verhoeven shares a mix of combat experience, with a fight apiece in boxing and MMA. He won each via strikes in 2014 and 2015, respectively.
If the question is whether to split their respective expert disciplines to collide, Verhoeven sees no problem. The middle ground would be a boxing match. Say the word and the Dutchman will be there.
“There could be an MMA and a kickboxing fight, which most likely ends up maybe in a 1-1; but a boxing match, that’s interesting,” Verhoeven said. “That’s away for both of us, even though he’s been in two boxing fights in the last year. Still, it’s different, and I’ve been boxing for quite some years as well. Not on a professional level, not in a ring, but yeah, I’ve been training with Peter Fury for years and years. He said, ‘You’re ready for it, so let any top-level boxer challenge you. Let’s show ’em what ya got.’
“I’m open to whatever the talks are about.”
Still just days removed from Ngannou’s fight, nothing has warmed up too seriously behind-the-scenes from Verhoeven and GLORY’s side. All parties appear interested but internal talks haven’t gone beyond that.
Verhoeven has watched and followed along closely with all things combat sports since his most recent fight in March, his first win over Rigters. The boom of Saudi Arabia becoming a global hub for big fights has been applaud-worthy, believes Verhoeven. He says the country put fighting “back on the map” in a way. But Saudi Arabia’s focuses have been wrestling, boxing and MMA. No kickboxing yet.
There are stars in the sport, says Verhoeven. They just need their chance to shine.
“The sport of kickboxing is not as big in North America,” Verhoeven said of why kickboxing hasn’t been highlighted the same as other combat sports. “I think that’s the main reason because everything that’s big over there like UFC, like boxing, that’s most relevant. So that’s what you talk about. But definitely, kickboxing is a part of the discussion.”
No one has ever embodied the success that a kickboxer can have in MMA like the reigning UFC light heavyweight champion, Alex Pereira. In 2020, the impressive two-division champion left GLORY and committed fully to MMA. This was after he had already achieved the same feats in GLORY, where Verhoeven is the poster boy.
Evidence of past MMA attempts from predecessors proved Pereira’s rise as quite surprising. The speed with which the Brazilian became a champion was arguably the most impressive.
For Verhoeven, it was to be expected.
“Definitely not [surprised],” Verhoeven said of Pereira’s success. “He’s been an amazing fighter within GLORY. Now he transitioned to the UFC and just his style, his power, he’s impeccable. I’m amazingly proud of him. I support him from a distance. We follow each other on Instagram so we stay in touch. I say, ‘Whenever you’re over in the Netherlands, let me know. Let’s do a workout.'”
If Verhoeven has run out of challenges in his sport, what stopped him from going all in on MMA?
“Years ago, I made the executive decision to not do it,” Verhoeven said. “I’ve been with GLORY, and for me, the reason to not transition into MMA was just being honest with myself. That’s what’s most important always. Looking at it, why would I transition into MMA? It might be a new challenge but do I want to be the very best MMA fighter or do I just want to, for example, build my name globally because the UFC organization is bigger?
“I think the heavier weight was on that, the building the brand Rico bigger and maybe the name worldwide. And I don’t think that’s the right reason to transition to a totally new sport if you don’t want to become the very best at it. That’s why I made the decision not to, and stay with GLORY and dominate the sport. Raise the bar as high as possible for the next generation.”
A Ngannou crossover superfight wouldn’t be the first of that nature to fly across the GLORY champion’s radar. According to him, there have been some ideas kicked around over the years. However, an Ngannou clash would undeniably top them all and Verhoeven will be free and available next year.
But until Verhoeven has his rematch with Rigters, fight fans around the globe will have to sit patiently, speculating what could be next for both.
“Hey, when we’re talking about baddest on the planet and we’re talking about crossover fights, this thing must happen,” Verhoeven said. “It has to happen because we’ve been seeing throughout the last few years the most crazy fights, and I think this is one of them that needs to be added to the list. So, let’s make it happen.”
