By: Sean Crose
It’s clear the heavyweight division is on the verge of a huge transition. Just as Tyson Fury’s surprise defeat of Wladimir Klitschko turned the page on the big man’s division back in 2015, a new crop of heavyweights are stepping up to fill a void. Fury, along with his peers Oleksandr Usyk, Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder, are on their way down the mountain they once dominated from. That means fighters are making their way up the mountain at the same time. One of these hungry up and comers is the thunderously hard punching Moses Itauma. Boasting a record of 14-0 with 12 – that’s 12 – knockouts, the Englishman has found himself the center of much attention as of late. That’s nothing but good news for the 6’5 Itauma, who also happens to be a very young 21 years of age.
Heading into this week’s bout between himself and Filip Hrgovic, Itauma’s youthfulness has been a matter of discussion. Mike Tyson was the youngest man to ever win a world heavyweight title way back in November of 1986. There’s now buzz that Itauma will become the second youngest heavyweight world champion should he emerge victorious this weekend in London. The IBF world heavyweight title, currently vacant, is at stake, after all. Not that Itauma himself is thinking too much about it. “I want to first address that I’m not trying to become the second youngest heavyweight champion of the world,” Itauma claimed via Yahoo. “I’m trying to beat Filip Hrgović and become a heavyweight world champion. Second of all, this fight, it’s what I wanted. I’ve asked Queensberry for so long. I think it’s a style matchup that I reckon I can thrive on, the pressure I can thrive on. It’s just waiting until fight night.”
“Obviously,” he continued, “the world title is an achievement and an accolade. That’s a plus one, but my sole focus is Hrgović. If I ain’t gonna beat Hrgović, it doesn’t matter about the world title, it doesn’t matter about the noise, it doesn’t matter nothing. So my job is to just be victorious fight night.” Fury himself sees Itauma as a legend slayer. “Moses will wreck him,” he’s said online of an Itauma-Usykk bout. While it’s true Fury is known to be loose-lipped and to say random statements, he may well be saying how he feels here. For Itauma is more than just powerful – he’s actually quite fast for a heavyweight. That’s something he has in common with an iconic former champion from the U.S. “I’ve always said I wanted to start off like Mike Tyson started off, but don’t end up like Mike Tyson ended up,” the fighter said, via The Times. “Now I’m in the shoes that Mike Tyson was, as in all the fame and accolades and whatnot at such a young age. I’m starting to see and realize why he fell off the way he did.” Before he can arrive at the top of the heap, however, Itauma must first best Hrgović. And that might be no easy task.
Like Itauma, Hrgović hits like a wrecking ball. Hrgović isn’t undefeated but has knocked out all but five of the men he’s bested. His lone loss came at the gloved fists of Daniel Dubois back in June of 2024. In other words, the man is no slug. Still, it’s Itauma who is the huge favorite walking in on Saturday. Hrgović no doubt wants the IBF belt as much as Itauma does – but Itauma is the one viewed as having the greater skill set. Then again, Itauma is seen as having a greater skill set than a lot of fighters these days.
