Hrjovic wants to fight Moses Itauma, says trainer Abel Sanchez

Filip Hrjovic is interested in fighting heavyweight contender Moses Itauma, trainer Abel Sanchez says. He stated that Hrjovic (19-1, 14 KO) will take the remainder of 2025 off, but is still interested in fighting the 20-year-old Itauma (13-0, 11 KO).

Cut above the eye

Hrjovic suffered a deep cut above his right eye in his lopsided 10-round unanimous decision win over David Adeleye on August 16, and he will need time for that injury to heal.

Too many quick KOs, too little development

Sanchez says he’s not sure if the Moses Itauma promoted by Queensberry is like that “Goods or not” At this point in his career. He points out that he scored several early knockdowns in the first round, and believes this is not good for his “development”. He stated that sooner or later, Itauma will be tested, and it would be better if he got rounds before that against good heavyweights.

Itauma’s last nine battles

• First round KOs: 6
• 2nd Second KOs: 3

Eliminating the opposition so quickly indicates that Itauma is not being matched with the right fighters, as he should have been promoted a long time ago. Even though he is 20 years old, he looks closer to 28. Appearance-wise, Itauma looks closer to 30 than 21. He was supposed to have already faced rivals. There’s no real progress that happens when he takes down fighters so quickly.

What we can go by is how Itauma looked in his last competitive fight against the amateurs Stylianos Roulias. In that competition, Musa appeared nervous with the way he was walking by the aggressive pressure fighter Roulias, who showed no fear of him, and was only focused on landing as hard as he could when cornering him. The way Itauma moved and composed himself showed that he was uncomfortable with an opponent fighting for change.

Is Moses Itauma really “the goods”?

Coach Abel Sanchez said: “Of course, we will take that into account. He is a rising star, and he has to go through some steps to reach championship level. Who knows if he is the goods or not. Felipe would love to fight with him. I discussed it with him and he would love to fight with him.” Boxing news About Filip Hrjovic’s interest in fighting Moses Itauma.

Interestingly, Moses got along in the same way with his older brother, Carol Itaumawhere it is pitted exclusively against lower class fighters. Like Moses, Carroll scored a lot of quick knockouts in the first rounds in his first nine fights.

Lessons from the fall of Carol Itauma

When Carroll Itauma went up against a powerful journeyman, Ezequiel Osvaldo Maderna, who was able to take his punches, was knocked out in the fifth round on January 28, 2023. It was the same matchmaking process that was done with Moses, and Carroll looked like gold until he was thrown with a halfway decent fighter.

“I would rather have him go three rounds than knock someone out in the first round because he is It doesn’t really 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.”

Correct test: Frank Sanchez

The ideal opponent for Itauma to gain some experience would have been Frank Sanchez, as this is a fight he would have taken in an IBF title eliminator to determine a mandatory for undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk.

Itauma claims that Sanchez was not one of the names offered to him. He didn’t say why he didn’t insist on fighting him, as this would have been the logical matchup to take if he wanted to continue improving. Itauma doesn’t get much by stealing these fighters:

• Dillian Whyte: 37
• Marius Wash: 45
• Mike Balogun: 41
• Dan Garber: 40

Since 2015, Ollie Campbell has provided readers with a clear view in the ring and a consistent voice on boxing’s biggest nights.