The point being, though, if you use the narrow area next to the statue to trap the verbeeg from the left side, you can get flanked from the right side. If using three melee characters to take down the verbeeg quickly, you can't just send one to draw them until after the initial fight.
It might be totally random, but it happens to me at least 90% of the time. Not one, either, generally three or more. Hence, I choose to approach it as an event that will happen, and plan my tactics accordingly.