The referee in the Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven bout says he had decided to stop the fight before the bell in the 11th round. According to the referee’s account to a boxing commission, he had seen enough during the round to end the contest early, but the decision was made in the context of the fight’s final moments and the controversy that followed. The reports describe the statement as part of an official communication to the relevant authorities, focused on what the referee observed and when he believed the bout should have been stopped.
Both outlets present the same core detail: the referee reports that he was prepared to end the match in the 11th round, prior to the bell sounding. The coverage frames the comment as an explanation of the referee’s actions and judgment, given the dispute surrounding the fight’s conclusion. The outlets do not provide additional specific scoring or incident details beyond the referee’s claim about stopping the bout before the bell.
