BoxRec

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:02 The last punch/swing he threw and he fell backwards. Them big swings you miss take it out of you

There were some in the first few rounds that he really wound up.

Big Phil is fairly static but all that amateur and pro experience had him getting out the way. If you go back a few rounds, maybe 5 or 6 there’s a big right near the ropes that Moses swings and he almost swung himself out the ring.

I've never seen a fighter physically fall apart like that.

It was like a puppet with the strings cut.

He wasn't even hurt. Just mentally & physically gone.

Fair play to Hrgovic for having that chin & sticking to his game plan.

CaptainSpacerod wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:00 Really pleased for Big Phil, showed astonishing bravery and will to win in the ring and showed what a class act he is with a superb interview.

What a fight, one for the ages.

At the risk of everyone on the forum piling on me, dare I give Howard Foster credit for not jumping in prematurely on the several occasions when he could've done

He acted like a competent referee for once. Doesn't need credit but we can recognise it.

Bullza wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03

Miguello wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 18:55

Bullza wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 18:52 So the guy loses every single round and becomes World Champion due to the other guy exhausting himself.

Can't be too proud really. He didn't beat Itauma, Itauma beat Itauma.

That is absolute nonsense - you must have been on the Itauma hype train

Hrgovic did his thing beautifully, all part of his gameplan

Itauma is another Josh Kelly for the UK boxing community to now process

You have no idea what his game plan was. Its irrelevant what hype was behind him. You can clearly see what happened for yourself. Itauma won every round.

He burnt through his stamina that quick that it brought him down to a level playing field and then went further down to the point the guy was swinging at the air and could barely stand on his feet.

You can give Hrgovic credit for having a good enough chin to stay in there long enough for that to have happened but otherwise he did nothing. He was a punching bag that lasted long enough for Itauma to finish himself off.

A World Championship Punching Bag

And he has a win over Joe Joyce too so he truly is the Champ of the Punching Bag men of today

gilgamesh wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:05

Bullza wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03

Miguello wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 18:55

That is absolute nonsense - you must have been on the Itauma hype train

Hrgovic did his thing beautifully, all part of his gameplan

Itauma is another Josh Kelly for the UK boxing community to now process

You have no idea what his game plan was. Its irrelevant what hype was behind him. You can clearly see what happened for yourself. Itauma won every round.

He burnt through his stamina that quick that it brought him down to a level playing field and then went further down to the point the guy was swinging at the air and could barely stand on his feet.

You can give Hrgovic credit for having a good enough chin to stay in there long enough for that to have happened but otherwise he did nothing. He was a punching bag that lasted long enough for Itauma to finish himself off.

A World Championship Punching Bag

And he has a win over Joe Joyce too so he truly is the Champ of the Punching Bag men of today

Don't feed the troll

I predicted Itauma to stop Hrgovic within six rounds, but conceded that my opinion was based on media hype and sparring stories.

I also noted that Itauma appeared gassed out before the end of the fourth round of the Franklin Jr. bout, which alarmed me, because he looked liked a front runner with a shallow gas tank. No one else from this forum discussed this potential flaw.

I admittedly underestimated Hrgovic, but overestimated Itauma.

If Itauma adjusts his fighting style, competing at only 60% the pace we’ve witnessed during his victories, to ensure he has sufficient gas in the tank to go the distance, then would he be anywhere near as fearsome?

Itauma’s aura of invincibility has been decimated.

Moses is only young and may eventually enjoy a successful career, but now that everyone knows that he’s beatable, he’ll be regarded by his rivals as a very flawed fighter, because his success (so far) is solely reliant on beating his opponents via an “all guns blazing” attitude.

Taansend wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:04 I've never seen a fighter physically fall apart like that.

It was like a puppet with the strings cut.

He wasn't even hurt. Just mentally & physically gone.

Fair play to Hrgovic for having that chin & sticking to his game plan.

And it wasn't actually that good a performance from Hrg, he just wasn't as knackered.

Fair play to Foster. I got on his back but he too done his homework on Hrg. Could have easily stepped in in the 8th and given Fwank the fairytale ending.

Must have had an iced tea with Big Herg during the week and realised "this guy is a proper lad. I'm gonna go down the middle"

joshj909 wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:05

CaptainSpacerod wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:00 Really pleased for Big Phil, showed astonishing bravery and will to win in the ring and showed what a class act he is with a superb interview.

What a fight, one for the ages.

At the risk of everyone on the forum piling on me, dare I give Howard Foster credit for not jumping in prematurely on the several occasions when he could've done

He acted like a competent referee for once. Doesn't need credit but we can recognise it.

Nope. Hrgovic never have him an excuse to stop it.

Enjoyed that fight.

Utter stupidity from Davison / Itauma to try & knock Hrgovic out in every round.

This was always my worry with Itauma.

He hasn’t fought anyone with any ambition & hasn’t had his chin & stamina tested & then jumps straight to world level.

I just hope he’s ok & able to fight again.

Well done Hrgovic. Paced himself superbly & stuck to the game plan. No panic at all from Sanchez in the corner. Having an intelligent person in the corner is a huge advantage

Fvck it’s going to be tough getting opponents for Moses now.

The “game plan” is there… but is there another fighter in the world that can take the punishment required?

Moses had enough hype to make millions, and those millions ment he could pay biggg cash for people to get chinned…

what now? My estimation of Moses actually went up this fight (I wasn’t as bought in as everyone).

He is too fast to tire out by being slick, he will just counter you (unless your Usyk levle slick Mabey), so you have to tire him out by being hard as nails… and that’s only really hrg at that levle… Mabey wardly.

If that loss dosent completly break his spirit/body (it might) I think he will be back, and one or 2 bounce back fights and he will be a favorite vs everyone in the world in 18 months time.

Riddick Bowie wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:08

joshj909 wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:05

CaptainSpacerod wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:00 Really pleased for Big Phil, showed astonishing bravery and will to win in the ring and showed what a class act he is with a superb interview.

What a fight, one for the ages.

At the risk of everyone on the forum piling on me, dare I give Howard Foster credit for not jumping in prematurely on the several occasions when he could've done

He acted like a competent referee for once. Doesn't need credit but we can recognise it.

Nope. Hrgovic never have him an excuse to stop it.

Agreed. No way could even Foster have stopped Hrgovic, he was always in the fight and throwing back

BBC not giving Hgovic much credit, their headline says Moses punched himself out

mickey1975 wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 18:44 No ill feeling towards Hrgovic whatsoever. But that was not a fantastic performance from him.

I don’t expect him to keep that belt for long.

I disagree. He paced it fantastic. He knew there was too much danger trading with Moses early on so rode it out.

I think Hrg benefited greatly from Moses having very poor cardio for a 12 round fight, rather than this being some sort of tactical master stroke.

Hrg looked very poor to me as a newly crowned world heavyweight champion.

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:12

mickey1975 wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 18:44 No ill feeling towards Hrgovic whatsoever. But that was not a fantastic performance from him.

I don’t expect him to keep that belt for long.

I disagree. He paced it fantastic. He knew there was too much danger trading with Moses early on so rode it out.

I think Hrg benefited greatly from Moses having very poor cardio for a 12 round fight, rather than this being some sort of tactical master stroke.

Hrg looked very poor to me as a newly crowned world heavyweight champion.

Hrg has had higher outputs in previous fights. There were rounds tonight where he did nothing for 2 minutes

KiwiRider wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:14

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:12

mickey1975 wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03
I disagree. He paced it fantastic. He knew there was too much danger trading with Moses early on so rode it out.

I think Hrg benefited greatly from Moses having very poor cardio for a 12 round fight, rather than this being some sort of tactical master stroke.

Hrg looked very poor to me as a newly crowned world heavyweight champion.

Hrg has had higher outputs in previous fights. There were rounds tonight where he did nothing for 2 minutes

That was probably down to his opponent bringing it.

KiwiRider wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:14

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:12

mickey1975 wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03
I disagree. He paced it fantastic. He knew there was too much danger trading with Moses early on so rode it out.

I think Hrg benefited greatly from Moses having very poor cardio for a 12 round fight, rather than this being some sort of tactical master stroke.

Hrg looked very poor to me as a newly crowned world heavyweight champion.

Hrg has had higher outputs in previous fights. There were rounds tonight where he did nothing for 2 minutes

Maybe he knew he just had to be there in the late rounds and that would be enough

KiwiRider wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:14

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:12

mickey1975 wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03
I disagree. He paced it fantastic. He knew there was too much danger trading with Moses early on so rode it out.

I think Hrg benefited greatly from Moses having very poor cardio for a 12 round fight, rather than this being some sort of tactical master stroke.

Hrg looked very poor to me as a newly crowned world heavyweight champion.

Hrg has had higher outputs in previous fights. There were rounds tonight where he did nothing for 2 minutes

And yet he still looked knackered himself.

I wish Hrgovic well but I suspect all the top heavyweights are licking their lips right now.

Championship rounds, Moses didn't get that far

Question with Itauma now is even with a more methodical approach, he may still gas. Especially if he fights someone like Fury (for example) who knows how to use the heavyweight size and learn on him.

But for those few rounds when he is firing, he is special at this level with the speed and range of punches.

Someone mentioned Vlad. Thing with Vlad is he had the size and reach to utilise a more rangy style with alot of leaning on the opponents (in Germany no less) to tire them. Moses can't really adapt in that way as he always needs to be in the pocket, and thus active.

Still, so young. If this doesn't break him, then he will grow alot from this over the next decade. But the blueprint is there and there will be guys better offensively than Hrgovic to crack it.

gregregegg wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:11 Fvck it’s going to be tough getting opponents for Moses now.

The “game plan” is there… but is there another fighter in the world that can take the punishment required?

Moses had enough hype to make millions, and those millions ment he could pay biggg cash for people to get chinned…

what now? My estimation of Moses actually went up this fight (I wasn’t as bought in as everyone).

He is too fast to tire out by being slick, he will just counter you (unless your Usyk levle slick Mabey), so you have to tire him out by being hard as nails… and that’s only really hrg at that levle… Mabey wardly.

If that loss dosent completly break his spirit/body (it might) I think he will be back, and one or 2 bounce back fights and he will be a favorite vs everyone in the world in 18 months time.

Think Okolie could give him rounds by tying him up. Miller is pretty durable. An interesting one would be Parker as he's durable but not Hrgovic levels of durable, however, he's a veteran who can move a bit so could be too difficult. Chisora would have been a good person have if he was 5 years younger. Andy Ruiz because he has quick hands and a big belly? Hughie because he's somewhat evasive? Vianello might be a middle ground?

Then you have those who will hot him and give him rounds but they're championship level at the moment. He'd be foolish to try this approach to Kabayel who can break down his body (and cardio) and Dubois who can land a big shot on the way in.

paultom wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:16

KiwiRider wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:14

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:12

I think Hrg benefited greatly from Moses having very poor cardio for a 12 round fight, rather than this being some sort of tactical master stroke.

Hrg looked very poor to me as a newly crowned world heavyweight champion.

Hrg has had higher outputs in previous fights. There were rounds tonight where he did nothing for 2 minutes

Maybe he knew he just had to be there in the late rounds and that would be enough

100%.

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:16

KiwiRider wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:14

Kilburn wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:12

I think Hrg benefited greatly from Moses having very poor cardio for a 12 round fight, rather than this being some sort of tactical master stroke.

Hrg looked very poor to me as a newly crowned world heavyweight champion.

Hrg has had higher outputs in previous fights. There were rounds tonight where he did nothing for 2 minutes

And yet he still looked knackered himself.

I wish Hrgovic well but I suspect all the top heavyweights are licking their lips right now.

Let's not forget he gave Dubois hell for most of their fight. Hrg IS a top heavy now.

paultom wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:06

gilgamesh wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:05

Bullza wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03

You have no idea what his game plan was. Its irrelevant what hype was behind him. You can clearly see what happened for yourself. Itauma won every round.

He burnt through his stamina that quick that it brought him down to a level playing field and then went further down to the point the guy was swinging at the air and could barely stand on his feet.

You can give Hrgovic credit for having a good enough chin to stay in there long enough for that to have happened but otherwise he did nothing. He was a punching bag that lasted long enough for Itauma to finish himself off.

A World Championship Punching Bag

And he has a win over Joe Joyce too so he truly is the Champ of the Punching Bag men of today

Don't feed the troll

I thought I was trolling the troll

Bullza wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 19:03

Miguello wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 18:55

Bullza wrote: ↑29 Aug 2026, 18:52 So the guy loses every single round and becomes World Champion due to the other guy exhausting himself.

Can't be too proud really. He didn't beat Itauma, Itauma beat Itauma.

That is absolute nonsense - you must have been on the Itauma hype train

Hrgovic did his thing beautifully, all part of his gameplan

Itauma is another Josh Kelly for the UK boxing community to now process

You have no idea what his game plan was. Its irrelevant what hype was behind him. You can clearly see what happened for yourself. Itauma won every round.

He burnt through his stamina that quick that it brought him down to a level playing field and then went further down to the point the guy was swinging at the air and could barely stand on his feet.

You can give Hrgovic credit for having a good enough chin to stay in there long enough for that to have happened but otherwise he did nothing. He was a punching bag that lasted long enough for Itauma to finish himself off.

Actually I do know what his game plan was because we saw it play out in front of us and is also why he came in better shape than his last 5-6 bouts

You must be a troll because this exact scene has played out so many times in boxing before. Young hype job blows their load in the early rounds, only to be stopped late by the veteran.

Moses had never fought more than 6 rounds in a competitive fight, so its not exactly a secret. His corner saved him from greater damage. Hrgovic was going t completely flatten him in one more round.

Well Done Hrgovic. Another arrow straight into the cowardly UK hypejob boxing circus, together with their biased commentators