Round-by-Round: Moses Itauma vs. Filip Hrgovic - 29 August 2026

[mickey1975]

Does anyone think it would have been an easier nights work for Moses if his opponent was Anthony Joshua or Fury?

Probably now. He hasn't earned the right to be compared to the peak of either. He's just been stopped by Herg. The passed the chin check isn’t a given, either. He didn't get hit clean to the head at all. He literally punched himself out.

[TheLeprechaun]

Does anyone think it would have been an easier nights work for Moses if his opponent was Anthony Joshua or Fury?

Absolutely. He runs through either of them in three rounds max. Lets keep things in context here, he just made Hrgovic look like a local journeyman until he gassed out due to not managing his cardio or preparing right.

[Heldenjaeger]

Absolutely. He runs through either of them in three rounds max. Lets keep things in context here, he just made Hrgovic look like a local journeyman until he gassed out due to not managing his cardio or preparing right.

Turning Itauma getting stopped in his first world-level test into proof that he'd run through Joshua and Fury in three rounds is quite the conclusion.

[mickey1975]

Does anyone think it would have been an easier nights work for Moses if his opponent was Anthony Joshua or Fury?

Absolutely. He runs through either of them in three rounds max. Lets keep things in context here, he just made Hrgovic look like a local journeyman until he gassed out due to not managing his cardio or preparing right.

Do you mean reknowned 12 round fighter Fury who even when he found himself in much the same state as Moses in round 9 of Usyk 1 still got up to complete the fight? Not to mention winning the second part of round 12 against Wilder after nearly having his head taken off earlier in the round.

[TheLeprechaun]

Do you mean reknowned 12 round fighter Fury who even when he found himself in much the same state as Moses in round 9 of Usyk 1 still got up to complete the fight? Not to mention winning the second part of round 12 against Wilder after nearly having his head taken off earlier in the round.

Yeah the chinny guy who has been hurt and dropped several times as you say.

[mickey1975]

Do you mean reknowned 12 round fighter Fury who even when he found himself in much the same state as Moses in round 9 of Usyk 1 still got up to complete the fight? Not to mention winning the second part of round 12 against Wilder after nearly having his head taken off earlier in the round.

Yeah the chinny guy who has been hurt and dropped several times as you say.

How many times has the chinny guy been stopped?

[Ruthless-RKO]

CHRIS EUBANK JR LEAKS PREVIOUS MESSAGE TO MOSES ITAUMA ABOUT BEN DAVISON

Chris Eubank Jr releases a previous message he sent to Moses Itauma stating ‘your talent and dedication is what sets you apart not some guy getting paid to hold the pads’ referring to Itauma’s trainer Ben Davison.

This comes in the wake of Itauma’s 9th Round stoppage loss to Filip Hrgovic for the IBF World Heavyweight Title.

[Ruthless-RKO]

This what happens when hype gets rushed too quickly.
Moses is a great talent but was put in too deep too quickly! Monetisation rather than nurturing & maturing. Moses will be a world champion, absolutely no doubt! He is world class!! Was just put in against a top class veteran to quickly
#daredToBeGreat #Respect

[Ruthless-RKO]

FILIP HRGOVIC OFFERS SOME ADVICE FOR MOSES ITAUMA

Filip Hrgovic has outlined what Moses Itauma must do to go from the first defeat of his career to the world heavyweight title, just like he did.

Hrgovic’s own march toward championship level was going smoothly until he encountered Daniel Dubois in the 18th fight of his career.

The Croatian, who was previously undefeated, was stopped on cuts by Dubois in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and considered retirement due to the intense embarrassment he felt from the loss.

But two years, two months and four fights later, Hrgovic is now IBF world heavyweight champion following his unforgettable victory over Itauma at O2 Arena, London on Saturday night.

Given what he went through against Dubois in June 2024, Hrgovic (21-1, 16 KOs) is acutely aware of how Itauma (14-1, 12 KOs) will be feeling as the inquest begins into the first defeat of his career.

“My advice to him right now is to, of course, not give up,” Hrgovic said. “And to not lose his confidence.

“Now he needs to get a few easy fights and easy wins, to build again and to learn from these mistakes.

“You can't box like an amateur, it's a 12-round fight, man. You need to pace yourself. You need to be ready in every moment. It's a marathon, not a sprint.”

Before Saturday night, Itauma was on a 10-fight KO hot streak, with all but one of those coming within two rounds. He looked on course for another early night given how he started against Hrgovic, who was battered from pillar to post in the opening few rounds.

Itauma could not miss as he switched his attack from straight left hands downstairs to slashing right hooks to the head from his southpaw stance.

But despite appearing to be in serious trouble, Hrgovic (21-1, 16 KOs) knew that his 21-year-old opponent would not be able to maintain such a pace for the whole fight.

“He outpaced himself,” Hrgovic explained. “I saw from the first round that he was breathing hard. He was throwing too much. He was fighting like an amateur. I knew I needed to endure. I needed to stay in there.
“The first time I saw that I hurt him was at the end of round eight and I saw my chance then from the beginning of Round 9 I knew I needed to jump on him and finish him.”

Thankfully for Hrgovic, the Slovakia-born Englishman decided to keep swinging until the very end which allowed him to pounce. But the Croatian knows that a more experienced operator may not have given him that chance in the first place.

“He’s a kid,” he says. “He could have boxed for the last few rounds, used his legs, boxed, moved. He was winning all of the rounds.

“He went toe-to-toe with me in round nine and it was a stupid move from him, very stupid. It was down to inexperience, he’s an amazing fighter but he’s still young.”

Hrgovic had predicted that Itauma would lack the requisite seasoning to finish the job against a hardened professional like him, who has never been knocked out in his entire life.

But while he was right about that, Hrgovic admitted he did not realise just how good Itauma — the man tipped by many to be the division’s next dominant force — really is.

When asked if he expected the fight to unfold as it did, Hrgovic said: “No. I'm always honest and I didn't expect that.

“I thought it was going to be easier. I didn't know he's so good. He's very fast and honestly, I've never been in a ring with someone like him.

“But he's inexperienced, he still boxes like an amateur. He's quick, but he needs more power. He can be better if he learns the professional style of fighting.

“He just needs to adjust to professional boxing a little bit but he's definitely an amazing talent and I believe he'll be world champion for sure.”

[TheLeprechaun]

Do you mean reknowned 12 round fighter Fury who even when he found himself in much the same state as Moses in round 9 of Usyk 1 still got up to complete the fight? Not to mention winning the second part of round 12 against Wilder after nearly having his head taken off earlier in the round.

Yeah the chinny guy who has been hurt and dropped several times as you say.

How many times has the chinny guy been stopped?

He got very fortunate refereeing vs Usyk and Wilder. Most fighters would have been waved off.

[Boxerbeetle]

Does anyone think it would have been an easier nights work for Moses if his opponent was Anthony Joshua or Fury?

This version of Joshua, quite possibly although obviously a much bigger chance of Moses getting blasted out early himself. He’s nowhere near ready for Fury or Usyk though, totally different styles.

[kbackup408]

Likely Moses will split with Ben, who do you reckon would be a good trainer for him?

Andy Lee might be a good fit both being southpaws!

[mickey1975]

Yeah the chinny guy who has been hurt and dropped several times as you say.

How many times has the chinny guy been stopped?

He got very fortunate refereeing vs Usyk and Wilder. Most fighters would have been waved off.

So, none then.

[Heldenjaeger]

Likely Moses will split with Ben, who do you reckon would be a good trainer for him?

Andy Lee might be a good fit both being southpaws!

Yeah, great fit. Andy Lee certainly knows how to make talented southpaws lose fights. Paddy Donovan can confirm that twice.

And somehow that's not even the worrying part of his coaching record.

[joshj909]

How many times has the chinny guy been stopped?

He got very fortunate refereeing vs Usyk and Wilder. Most fighters would have been waved off.

So, none then.

His recovery is excellent, one of the best, but his chin has never been the best.

[Controversial]

“But he's inexperienced, he still boxes like an amateur. He's quick, but he needs more power. He can be better if he learns the professional style of fighting.

Honest stuff from Hrg, interesting that he says Moses needs more power.

[joshj909]

“But he's inexperienced, he still boxes like an amateur. He's quick, but he needs more power. He can be better if he learns the professional style of fighting.

Honest stuff from Hrg, interesting that he says Moses needs more power.

I assume he means if he's going to fight in that style. Interesting that the two times Hrgovic has gone down, against Itauma and Zhang, they both happened early in the fight and appeared to knock him off balance rather than rock him. The only two opponents that he could have faced that hit harder than Itauma are Dubois and Zhang, who are no slouches.

[JC]

“But he's inexperienced, he still boxes like an amateur. He's quick, but he needs more power. He can be better if he learns the professional style of fighting.

Honest stuff from Hrg, interesting that he says Moses needs more power.

I assume he means if he's going to fight in that style. Interesting that the two times Hrgovic has gone down, against Itauma and Zhang, they both happened early in the fight and appeared to knock him off balance rather than rock him. The only two opponents that he could have faced that hit harder than Itauma are Dubois and Zhang, who are no slouches.

I think he said Adeleye actually hit him the hardest.

[mickey1975]

Honest stuff from Hrg, interesting that he says Moses needs more power.

I assume he means if he's going to fight in that style. Interesting that the two times Hrgovic has gone down, against Itauma and Zhang, they both happened early in the fight and appeared to knock him off balance rather than rock him. The only two opponents that he could have faced that hit harder than Itauma are Dubois and Zhang, who are no slouches.

I think he said Adeleye actually hit him the hardest.

That's definitely how it looked.

[Old bones Ian]

Fight reminded me of Derek Angol v Tyrone Booze , so much energy and punches used up in the first 5 rounds, the nervous energy eating away and then the realisation that the opponent isn't going anywhere.

[keithmoonhangover]

Likely Moses will split with Ben, who do you reckon would be a good trainer for him?

Andy Lee might be a good fit both being southpaws!

Adam Booth or Andy Lee for me.

[TBA]

Does anyone think it would have been an easier nights work for Moses if his opponent was Anthony Joshua or Fury?

Fury would bamboozle him with the size, leaning and have him on the end of the jab.

Joshua straights would be a problem. But obviously the Prenga first round is worrying.

Itauma catches both round the corner at some point though. The question is what is the power like at the top level. Seems more Andy Ruiz fast hands at the heaviest than genuine KO power.

I think Hrg walking through everything (bar the off balance KD) says a bit more about the Itauma power than Hrgs granite chin.

[Cyclops]

Always a chance of something kicking off at the boxing

You can see the crowd pre occupied with something in the crowd and it was pretty obvious at the start of the 5th

Having finally watched the fight back in full, yeah definitely at the start of 5th when the crowd noise changes and even ringside observers can be seen looking up to their rights. Proper cowboy saloon stuff

The amount of grinning blokes who instinctively grabbed their cameraphones and were filming it, I'm sure it'll be on line somewhere. It's part of any night like that there will be idiots who can't enjoy themselves, but during the main event?!

Morons.

[gilgamesh]

Plus he cuts kinda easy. Itauma gave him some fresh scar tissue too. So even if his chin continues to hold up. What about the rest of his face?

[Ruthless-RKO]

The Itauma vs Hrgovic fight is another reminder of how unpredictable boxing can be. Anything can happen once you step into the ring.

Congratulations, Filip on a great victory!

Moses, this is not the end. Come back stronger and keep moving forward. Your journey has only just begun!