Hrgovic stops Itauma in ninth; questions raised over young heavyweight’s conditioning

Moses Itauma, 21, was stopped by Filip Hrgovic, 34, in the ninth round in the ring during Itauma’s first world heavyweight title fight late on Saturday night.

Itauma had never previously gone beyond six rounds in his professional career and had won 12 of his previous 14 fights by early knockout, with the two exceptions being six‑round bouts. Early in the title contest he dictated the pace and used speed and skill to trouble Hrgovic, who later admitted he believed Itauma had won each of the first eight rounds; Itauma dropped Hrgovic only once, in the second round.

The contest turned in the ninth when Itauma stumbled and began to weave across the ring, appearing dazed and exhausted as Hrgovic pressed him on the ropes. Hrgovic landed a right followed by a pulverising left cross, at which point the referee stepped in and a white towel fell from Itauma’s corner while Hrgovic wheeled away with his right arm raised.

Although Hrgovic absorbed repeated punishment earlier in the fight, he resurfaced after the second‑round knockdown and continued to fight back, landing heavy shots as Itauma’s energy levels visibly declined. Itauma grimaced and was breathing heavily between rounds, signals that the pace he had set was taking a toll.

Before the fight Itauma had been asked two questions: could he take a punch, and would he be brave in a dog‑fight; he provided affirmative answers on both counts. New concerns, however, emerged about whether his conditioning was sufficient for the longer distance and whether his corner, led by trainer Ben Davison, had the tactical plan to change approach if he failed to stop Hrgovic inside six rounds — concerns the article says were answered with “a resounding no.”

Plan A had been effective for six rounds, but when Itauma ran out of energy he largely abandoned the jab and surged forward in search of a stoppage. In the eighth, when Hrgovic hurt him for the first time, Itauma threw more punches than in any other round and, despite Hrgovic’s later assessment that he might already have been seven rounds down, he continued to press in a manner Hrgovic described as “very stupid”, urging that Itauma should have “got on his bike and boxed at range.”

Shakur Stevenson wrote on X: “Unbelievable talent and skills,” Stevenson wrote on X. “He’s young and he will be a champion one day if he learns from that. He throws every punch at 100mph and that can be a gift and a curse. Especially in the heavyweight division.” Andy Lee added: “Moses beat Jermaine Franklin in his last fight [a fifth‑round stoppage]. I thought it was a spectacular knockout. But just before the knockout, there were little signs of distress which you would expect to see from a young fighter. You’ve landed shots that usually knock out or stop your opponent but this guy is still not going down. So I think the knockout came at the perfect time for Moses.” The piece also notes Itauma last week voiced a preference to be “left alone”, a line Hrgovic used to dismiss him as “a kid”. Lee is the best trainer in Britain and Ireland – but Itauma’s corner should have paid heed to those warning signs.

Itauma can be as special as Hrgovic, Stevenson and Lee all predict but he needs to harness his natural ability to a fresh way of working. This defeat could yet be the making of him — as long as Itauma’s fresh resolve can match his shimmering talent.