Carl Froch has offered his prediction for Moses Itauma vs Filip Hrgovic while, at the same time, considering whether a win for either man would surpass Anthony Joshua’s title-winning effort in 2016.
The two heavyweights will square off at London’s O2 Arena next Saturday, colliding for the IBF strap that was relinquished by Oleksandr Usyk in June.
Whoever emerges victorious must then face mandatory challenger Frank Sanchez, who agreed to a step-aside fee in exchange for accommodating their vacant title clash.
And while Hrgovic represents his toughest opponent thus far, many are favouring Itauma to become the youngest world heavyweight champion since Mike Tyson dethroned Trevor Berbick in 1986.
Up to this point, the 21-year-old has produced a series of dominant performances but against mostly limited opposition, perhaps with the exception of his emphatic fifth-round finish over Jermaine Franklin in March.
But even then, it could hardly be said that Itauma proved his world-class credentials beyond any reasonable doubt, whereas Hrgovic is firmly considered a top 10 heavyweight.
As a result, Hall of Famer Froch has told NewBettingSites that he sees Itauma claiming a more impressive scalp than ‘AJ’ did by way of a second-round stoppage of Charles Martin.
“Itauma beating Hrgovic is a far better win. Charles Martin was useless. He won a vacant [IBF] title and never did anything. Hrgovic is a bona fide, solid, Eastern European menace.
“He is a good fighter and will give anyone a hard fight. But I think Itauma is going to be too quick, too fresh. I think he boxes rings around him for a few rounds and possibly gets the stoppage late on.
“But it will be tough for him, provided he can take one on the chin, because I think Hrgovic will hit him on the chin at some point.”
Hrgovic’s best performance arguably came against Daniel Dubois in 2024, when he showed tremendous durability but was ultimately stopped on cuts in round eight.
