Rico Verhoeven is set to launch an appeal against the result of his controversial WBC heavyweight title fight with Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday night.The kickboxing legend came close to surpassing Buster Douglas’ stunning upset win over Mike Tyson in 1990, but was stopped in the 11th and penultimate stanza.AFPOleksandr Usyk dropped Rico Verhoeven with a lead uppercut and closed the show in the dying embers of the 11th round[/caption]Verhoeven, who, to the surprise of everyone, was able to pull Usyk into a life-or-death battle, was dropped in the final 20 seconds of the round by a well-timed lead uppercut.The groggy Dutchman made his way back to his feet on unsteady legs and was afforded precious seconds to have his gumshield placed back into his mouth.When the action was restarted, Usyk jumped on Verhoeven and landed a series of unanswered blows as referee Mark Lyson stepped in and waved off the bout after the bell.The stoppage divided opinion, with many, including DAZN commentator Todd Grisham, believing it came too soon.“What are you doing, referee? Are you kidding me? This is for the heavyweight championship of the world,” said Grisham.Verhoeven also felt hard done by the stoppage and intends to take it up with the Egyptian Professional Boxing Association, which oversaw the event.What did Verhoeven say about the stoppage?Speaking to Boxing News in the immediate aftermath, Verhoeven said: “They stopped the fight after the bell. “I think we’re just going to go ahead and file an appeal because this makes no sense.“When the referee intervened, I wasn’t dazed or anything like that. “I looked at him, thinking: Why are you stopping it? We were so close to making it to the end. Referee Mark Lyson stepped in and waved off the fight after the bellGetty“It’s totally absurd. The referee must be aware of what he’s doing.“Of course, mistakes happen, but he needs to admit his error. “They should review the footage and declare the fight a ‘no contest’ or go to the judges’ scorecards. “And if they went to the cards, at that point I was ahead on points.”What were the scorecards?At the time of the stoppage, two judges had it 95-95 even, while the third had it 96-94 in Verhoeven’s favour.They were unanimous in their scoring in every round except the 10th.Watch Boxing on DAZN*If you click a link in this boxout, we will earn affiliate revenueSign up to DAZN to access the definitive subscription for boxing fans.Upgrade to DAZN Ultimate from just £24.99/month, guaranteeing access to 185+ fights annually, a minimum of 12 pay-per-views at no extra cost, as well as every Lega Serie A match and other elite football access.Alternatively, DAZN Standard is just £15.99/month, with the caveat you will have to pay for pay-per-view events.Click here to sign up.