While not known for his one-punch knockout power, Tony Bellew believes Filip Hrgovic could deliver a “nasty” finish if he faces one of Oleksandr Usyk’s toughest challengers in recent times.
The Croatian became his country’s first world heavyweight champion in August, causing a sizable upset by stopping Moses Itauma in nine rounds.
For the most part, Hrgovic was being thoroughly outboxed by the dynamic 21-year-old, whose speed and ring IQ seemed as if it would win him the fight.
With Itauma becoming increasingly fatigued, though, Hrgovic capitalised on his opponent’s exhaustion and managed to claim the vacant IBF title.
As a result, the 34-year-old’s next outing is likely to be against mandatory challenger Frank Sanchez, who is due his shot after agreeing step-aside money for the Itauma bout to be a world title fight.
Then, if Hrgovic successfully defends his title, Turki Alalshikh has expressed his interest in seeing ‘El Animal’ face former kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven.
The Dutchman did, of course, give a terrific account of himself as he came remarkably close to defeating Usyk, who ultimately scored an 11th-round stoppage in May.
Former world champion Bellew, meanwhile, has told Fight Your Corner that he believes Hrgovic would orchestrate a far more emphatic finish than the Ukrainian did.
“Hrgovic – by a nasty knockout.”
Turki Alalshikh has some HUGE fights on his wishlist, so @CharIieParsons got @jack_catt93 and @TonyBellew to predict how they'd play out.
Which fight do you want to see most? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/ao2d5C6RVl
— Fight Your Corner (@Fightcornershow) October 1, 2026
While the Croatian champion has said he would entertain a lucrative opportunity to face Verhoeven, it seems he is currently more eager to secure a unification match.
This could arrive via a rematch with Daniel Dubois, who must first retain his WBO world title in a second encounter with Fabio Wardley on October 17.
