Trainer Abel Sanchez says Filip Hrgovic is interested in fighting heavyweight title challenger Moses Itauma. He claims that Hrgovic (19-1, 14 KO) will be on hiatus until the end of 2025, but he is still interested in fighting the teenage 20-year-old Itauma (13-0, 11 KO).
Cut above the eye
Hrgovic suffered a deep cut above his right eye during a lopsided 10-round unanimous decision victory over David Adeleye on Aug. 16 and will need time for the injury to heal.
Too many quick KOs, too little development
Sanchez says he’s not sure Queensberry-promoted Moses Itauma is like that “goods or not” at this stage of his career. He notes that he has scored many early first-round knockouts and believes it is not good for his “development”. He says Itauma will be tested sooner or later and it would be better if he gets rounds against good heavyweights sooner.
Itauma’s last nine fights
KO in the first round: 6
KO in the second second: 3
Knocking out his opponent quickly suggests that Itauma is not being matched with the right fighters as he should have been beefed up a long time ago. Although he is 20 years elderly, he looks closer to 28. In terms of appearance, Itauma seems closer to 30 than 21. He should have already been matched with other rivals. There is no real development when he knocks out fighters so quickly.
You can only see what Itauma looked like in his last competitive fight against Stylianos Roulias. During this competition, Moses seemed stressed by the way he was taken down by aggressive pressure fighter Roulias, who showed no fear of him and was simply focused on landing as strenuous as he could when he was cornered. The way Itauma moved and held himself showed that he was uncomfortable with an opponent who was fighting for a change.
Is Moses Itauma really “good”?
“Of course, we would consider it. He is a rising star and has to take a few steps to get to the championship level. Who knows if he is suitable or not. Filip would really benefit from a fight with him. I talked to him about it and he would love to fight him,” said coach Abel Sanchez. Boxing news about Filip Hrgovic’s interest in fighting Moses Itauma.
Interestingly, Moses was selected in the same way as his older brother, Karol Itaumhowever, it was fielded only against lower-tier fighters. Like Moses, Karol scored multiple quick first-round knockouts in his first nine fights.
Lessons from the fall of Charles Itauma
When Karol Itauma stood in front of a solid journeyman, Ezequiel Osvaldo Maderna, who was able to absorb his punch, was knocked out in the fifth round on January 28, 2023. It was the same identical matchmaking that had been done for Moses, and Charles looked like gold until he was thrown against a halfway decent fighter.
I’d rather he go three rounds than knock someone out in the first because of this really doesn’t say anything about his development.” Sanchez said of Itauma. “It will be tested in the future and it would be nice to see it tested along the way.”
Actual test: Frank Sanchez
The ideal opponent for Itauma to gain some experience would be Frank Sanchez, as this is a fight he could have in an IBF title eliminator to determine the mandatory for undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk.
Itauma says Sanchez was not one of the names suggested to him. He doesn’t say why he didn’t insist on fighting him, as that would be the logical fight he would take if he wanted to improve himself further. Itauma doesn’t get much out of shooting these fighters:
Dillian Whyte: 37
Mariusz Wach: 45
Mike Balogun: 41
Dan Garber: 40
Olly Campbell has been covering boxing since 2010 and writing for Boxing News 24 since 2014. He has been based in the UK and currently covers the world boxing scene, providing fight news, results and features that allow fans to hear the biggest stories in the sport.
With a background in reporting from the UK and Europe, Olly has developed a style that combines edged analysis with accessible writing, making his work valuable to dedicated followers and casual fans alike. His reports consistently highlight champions, challengers and emerging prospects on the global stage.
Oleksandr Usyk has shared his reaction to Anthony Joshua‘s dramatic knockout victory against Kristian Prenga.
Usyk nearly suffered his own shock defeat in May when he was pushed to the limit by kickboxing star Rico Verhoevenand two months on it was nrw teammate Joshua’s turn to come close to a massive upset loss that would have stunned the heavyweight division.
The Brit was dropped twice by massive underdog Prenga in the opening round of their clash in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, but ‘AJ’ managed to recover and record a big knockdown of his own in the second round that resulted in the stoppage victory.
Joshua and Usyk now train together, having famously had two battles for the unified world heavyweight title in 2021 and 2022, and the Ukrainian has had his say on his stablemate’s victory over Prenga.
Speaking to TalkSporttwo-time undisputed champion Usyk praised Joshua, insisting ‘AJ is back’ before predicting that Joshua will now claim a knockout win over long-term rival Tyson Fury in his next bout.
“Anthony Joshua is next undisputed champion. First round it’s a test but AJ is back.
It’s boxing, [the] big upper cut is good, it’s a knockdown. AJ [come] back and win.
“Greedy Belly [Fury] will speak now and say weak chin, Greedy Belly get out. AJ wins [against Fury], [he will] knock him out.”
Fury was victorious on Friday as he earned a seventh round retirement win against Mariusz Wach in Thailand, paving the way for the showdown against Joshua later this year.
Jake Paul was the last man to fight Anthony Joshua and he has now revealed his verdict on AJ’s chaotic victory over Kristian Prenga.
Joshua went up against Prenga in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturdayin a clash that was expected to be a comfortable win for the former world heavyweight champion in order to set up the long overdue battle against Tyson Fury.
Any hopes of seeing that clash were nearly ended after AJ was dropped twice in the opening round of the bout, though he was able to recover and claim the second round knockout to come out on top and prevent a stunning shock upset from taking place.
Saturday’s outing saw Joshua back in the ring for the first time since his sixth round triumph over YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul back in Decemberand now ‘The Problem Child’ himself has shared his reaction to his former rival’s victory over Prenga.
Posting on social mediaPaul praised AJ for earning the win, after returning to action following the tragic car crash he was involved in at the end of last year which took the lives of his two close friends.
“Happy for Joshua with that win after all he’s been through. Remembering Sina and Latz with this one.”
Happy for Joshua with that win after all he’s been through.
Remembering Sina and Latz with this one.
— Jake Paul (@jakepaul) July 25, 2026
The win for Joshua should now tee up for meeting with Fury later this year, after ‘The Gypsy King’ held up his end of the bargain by also securing a win in his warm-up bout on Friday, securing a seventh round retirement win against Mariusz Wach.
Anthony Joshua may have earned a knockout win over Kristian Prenga but the fight certainly didn’t unfold as most people expected.
Joshua was facing the Albanian in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, and it looked like a massive upset could be on the cards when he was dropped twice in the opening round.
‘AJ’ was able to recover and went on to secure a second round knockout victory to prevent the shock lossseemingly paving the way for the battle against Tyson Fury later this year.
One man who was ringside to witness the battle was former cruiserweight world champion Tony Bellewand he praised Joshua’s ability to turn things around in the fight after describing it as ‘chaos’.
“We predicted round two but I don’t think we foresaw that. That was chaos. He doesn’t see the uppercut coming and finds himself on the floor without knowing how he got there.
“The second one he did see it coming and he was able to clench down on the jaw. He got up and then the experience that he has he used tonight because he tied him up. Against Andy Ruiz he didn’t know what he was doing and didn’t know how to do that, but tonight he did.
“He showed once again there is no quit. To be that hurt in the first round and get up, that’s the recoveries of power. People talk about your chin, but it’s not, it’s the level of fitness that gets you up from the floor.
“When Joshua gets a fighter hurt he’s the best finisher in the division. Whenever he hurts someone they’re gone. I haven’t seen him drop anybody and they survive, only Andy Ruiz. He’s a ruthless finisher.”
The clash between Joshua and Fury is now expected to be announced soon for later this year, after Fury won his own interim fight on Friday by defeating Mariusz Wach.
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