Frank Warren has insisted that he was initially cautious about matching Moses Itauma with Filip Hrgovic, only for the youngster’s team to convince him otherwise.
Prior to their contest, many viewed the Croatian as a calculated risk and an opponent who could, at his best, drag Itauma into deep waters.
Sure enough, Hrgovic did just that after losing practically every round, having been somewhat bamboozled by the 21-year-old’s phenomenal speed and southpaw skills.
With Itauma aggressively pursuing a grandstand finish, Hrgovic then took advantage of his man’s depleting energy levels and orchestrated a stunning ninth-round finish.
In doing so, he became his country’s first-ever world heavyweight champion and, by claiming the vacant IBF title, his first defence must be against mandatory challenger Frank Sanchez.
Itauma, meanwhile, is set to enter a rebuilding process after meeting with head coach Ben Davison and promoter Warren, who wishes to find out exactly what went wrong.
In particular, the Queensberry boss was shocked to hear Itauma’s brother, Karol, express to him at ringside that the heavyweight prodigy would not feel like a true champion unless he knocked Hrgovic out.
Speaking with The Ring, Warren also admitted that Hrgovic was never his first choice of opponent for the Brit’s 15th professional outing last month.
“I was disappointed because, first of all, this fight, I was looking to make it against a different opponent. But we were talking about it and [Team Itauma] said [Hrgovic] was the opponent they wanted and that he’s perfect in every way.
“If he had gone and knocked him out in the eighth round, then everyone would have been a genius. In some ways, I’m pleased with what happened on Saturday.”
Not only was Warren pleased with the majority of Itauma’s performance, but he also looks forward to finding ways to make him a “complete package”.
