Filip Hrgovic lost every round against Moses Itauma before capitalising on the young Brit gassing out to force a stoppage and become IBF heavyweight world champion. From ringside, British boxing icon and big Itauma fan Naseem Hamed was left ‘so surprised’.
Itauma looked spectacular to start the contest, scoring a knockdown in round two and bamboozling Hrgovic, who showed one of the most impressive chins in the division to remain in the fight.
After looking like he was finally putting a dent in the Croatian, Itauma appeared to empty the tank in the eighth in search of a stoppage. By the end of the round, he looked exhausted, and Hrgovic took advantage in the ninth, finding sustained success to beat the fight out of Itauma. As referee Howard Foster stepped in to wave it off, the towel also came in from Itauma’s corner, led by Ben Davison.
Speaking on the DAZN broadcast post-fight, Hamed recognised that the defeat came from a lack of experience and perhaps poor corner advice.
“My immediate thought is I’m so surprised that he can just throw it out there, for them to tell him just to keep punching and go at it when he knew he had to reserve himself. There was no reserve tank.
“But this may be the best thing that ever happen to Moses, simply because of the experience and for him to know what he’s got to do next time. And he knows he can’t just run away with trying to blast somebody out. Do you know what, how wrong was I? The fact it, it was a good fight. He didn’t even lose a round, but he just put everything into them five, six, seven rounds.”
In tonight’s defeat, Itauma failed to break ‘Nas’ record as the youngest world champion from the UK. He will, however, undoubtedly come again, as Hamed pointed out.
As for Hrgovic, who is Croatia’s first-ever heavyweight world champion, he dismissed an already ordered fight with Frank Sanchez, urging promoter Frank Warren to make him a unification bout instead.
