"I'm being a lawyer for the ref" - Teddy Atlas supports referee in Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven boxing match

Veteran boxing trainer and analyst Teddy Atlas has chimed in on the controversial ending to Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven. Boxing's unified and lineal heavyweight kingpin Usyk recently defended his throne by beating kickboxing great Verhoeven via 11th-round TKO. 

However, the fight was rife with controversy. Many claimed that the judges -- two of whom had it 95-95, while one had it 96-94 for Verhoeven heading into round 11 -- ought to have scored far more rounds than that in Verhoeven's favor. 

Furthermore, Usyk knocked the Dutch fighter down toward the latter part of round 11 and later unleashed a barrage of punches. The referee, Mark Lyson, then stepped in and waved the fight off, giving Usyk the TKO win. 

While some feel the referee wronged Verhoeven with the supposedly early stoppage, Teddy Atlas seemingly disagrees. 

Teddy Atlas defends Referee Mark Lyson after Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven

Taking to his YouTube channel, THE FIGHT with Teddy Atlas, the legendary boxing trainer harked back to the thunderous uppercut with which Oleksandr Usyk stunned Verhoeven in the 11th round. Incidentally, akin to a recent argument that UFC commentator Joe Rogan made, Atlas also highlighted that the referee gave Rico Verhoeven way more than the mandatory eight-count after the knockdown to recover. 

Atlas stated, "There's the uppercut. Now we did our own clock. 30 seconds has gone by. Not eight (seconds); 30 seconds he's had to recover. But the referee steps in now, definitely a little after the bell. I really believe that the referee already made up his mind. Simultaneously, as the bell was about to ring, the referee was already ready to stop it. So you can't blame him." 

He further cited the controversial referee stoppage in Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Meldrick Taylor from their WBC and IBF light welterweight title clash from 1990. In that matchup, Referee Richard Steele chose to wave the fight off and hand Chavez the TKO win in the waning seconds of the 12th and final round while a dazed Taylor was well ahead on the scorecards. 

Atlas explained, "Now, for the people out there that said, 'The referee knew there was only 10 seconds left.' That ain't his job."

Drawing parallels between that and the Usyk vs. Verhoeven stoppage, Atlas defended Mike Lyson. He asserted, "Yeah. I'm being a lawyer for the ref. You know? Yeah. What are we gonna do? I'm a lawyer for anyone who I think is right in a business I've been in 50 years. I'm a prosecutor for anyone who I think should be thrown out, or thrown in jail." 

 

Watch Teddy Atlas discuss the topic below: 

What's next for Oleksandr Usyk and Rico Verhoeven?

His Excellency Turki Alalshikh is regarded as one of the key boxing promoters who made the 'Glory in Giza' boxing card headlined by Oleksandr Usyk vs. Rico Verhoeven possible. Alalshikh recently indicated that he felt the fight was marred by an early stoppage and that Verhoeven deserves a rematch against Usyk. 

Nevertheless, the Saudi Arabian boxing promoter noted that Germany's Agit Kabayel has waited quite long for his title shot, in addition to implying that Usyk would have to decide whether he'd face Verhoeven or Kabayel next.