Moses Itauma has predicted his “biggest rival” for the future, naming an unbeaten heavyweight who comes off six straight stoppages.
The 21-year-old must first prove his world-class capabilities against Filip Hrgovic, who he will face for the vacant IBF title on August 29.
Even without the additional prize, Itauma is expected to encounter his toughest assignment thus far at London’s O2 Arena, taking on a highly-rated contender known for his durability and experience.
The winner must then defend his belt – which was relinquished by Oleksandr Usyk – against mandatory challenger Frank Sanchez, who has agreed step-aside money for while he waits in the wings.
Should Itauma come through both Hrgovic and Sanchez, which is no foregone conclusion, he will then be poised to enter a unification match as the youngest heavyweight champion since Mike Tyson.
Someone who could represent an obvious opponent is Daniel Dubois, who must first defend his WBO title in an expected rematch with Fabio Wardley this coming October.
From Itauma’s perspective, though, WBC champion Agit Kabayel is likely to remain his “biggest rival” for the foreseeable future.
The undefeated 33-year-old was elevated to full champion in the wake of Usyk’s splintering of the titles, having claimed his WBC ‘interim’ belt with a sixth-round stoppage over Zhilei Zhang last year.
Speaking with Boxing News, among other outlets, Itauma highlighted this as one of the reasons for naming Kabayel as such a fierce competitor.
“It’ll have to be Agit Kabayel. He’s beaten everybody that’s there. He’s beaten Zhang … he’s pretty much beaten everybody that’s rising right now, so I’d say he will probably be my biggest rival.”
Known as one of the division’s most ferocious body punchers, Kabayel also boasts a notable victory over Sanchez, who he stopped in round seven of their 2024 encounter.
