Filip Hrgovic vs. Tony Yoka - IBF Eliminator

[Ruthless-RKO]

Tony Yoka Accepts Invitation To Enter Talks For IBF Title Eliminator Versus Filip Hrgovic

Tony Yoka is prepared to revisit an old rivalry from his amateur days.

Boxing Scene has confirmed that Paris’ Yoka—a 2016 Olympic Gold medalist and current rising heavyweight contender—has accepted an invitation from the IBF to enter talks for a final title eliminator versus Croatia’s Filip Hrgovic. His decision comes just before the three-day deadline to decide whether to pursue such a fight.

“Tony Yoka has formally accepted tonight in writing the challenge to fight Filip Hrgovic in a final IBF Final Eliminator for the heavyweight world championship,” Nisse Sauerland of Wasserman Boxing, Hrgovic’s co-promoter announced Thursday afternoon via social media. “’El Animal has found a dance partner.”

The next step in the process will be for the IBF to formally order the fight. Once that occurs, the two sides will be given fifteen days to negotiate terms to avoid a purse bid hearing. Neither party can enter an agreement for another bout once the eliminator is formally ordered, per IBF rule 9.a.2 (Purse Bids—No Intervening Bouts).

Yoka’s willingness to take it to this point comes on the heels of the same offer being extended to Luis Ortiz and Joseph Parker, both of whom declined for varying reasons.

A pairing between Yoka and Hrgovic comes with a built-in backstory. The familiar amateur rivals last met in the 2016 Olympic super heavyweight semifinals, with Yoka claiming a decision as part of his Gold medal run. Hrgovic went home with a Bronze medal for Croatia, with both boxers turning pro the following year.

Yoka (11-0, 9KOs) also eliminated Hrgovic from the quarterfinal round of the 2019 World Amateur Championships, for which he claimed top honors in the super heavyweight division. Hrgovic previously beat Yoka in the 2010 World Amateur Youth Championships.

Hrgovic (14-0, 12KOs) has been moved at an aggressive pace, though with his competition level quickly leveling off due to an inability to get the top heavyweight contenders in the ring. The 6’6” heavyweight—who trains out of Miami under the tutelage of Pedro Diaz—has been gunning for a shot at a heavyweight title since the pandemic, fighting twice late in 2020 in hopes of next entering a title eliminator.

One was sought with Michael Hunter II, the second-generation heavyweight who ultimately moved in a different direction after not being pleased with the terms of the purse bid which was won by former promoter Matchroom Boxing. Hrgovic has since settled for a pair of wins over unbeaten but obscure heavyweights Marko Randonjic and Emir Ahmatovic, both of whom the undefeated Croatian stopped inside of three rounds.

Yoka has seen his career surge since the pandemic, posting four wins over mid-level opposition. The run began with a first-round knockout of countryman and former title challenger Johann Duhaupas in September 2020, followed two months later with a ten-round shout of veteran divisional gatekeeper Christian Hammer.

The 2021 campaign for Yoka saw fight twice including a big reception in Paris hometown last September, where he stopped unbeaten but overmatched Petar Milas inside of seven rounds. The win came six months after turning away Joel Djeko whom Yoka stopped in the twelfth and final round of their EBU heavyweight title fight last March in Nantes, France.

The winner of the eventual IBF final eliminator will become the sanctioning body’s mandatory challenger to Oleksandr Usyk (19-0, 13KOs), who also holds the WBA “Super”/WBO/IBO belts. Ukraine’s Usyk obtained the belts in a September 25 win over England’s Anthony Joshua (24-2, 22KOs). A rematch between Usyk and Joshua is currently eyed for the springtime.

[Ruthless-RKO]

It’s good Yoka has accepted the invitation.

Doesn’t mean the fight will happen.

But Yoka is in a similar position to Hrgovic.

So why not.

[maverick23]

I love this fight. Credit to Yoka for accepting it and rolling the dice.

[Perkin Warbeck]

Yoka will probably win this.

Hrgovic has declined during the past few years due to soft opposition, he looked slower in his last two fights and his defense is rather poor. But he does punch hard so you never know.

Hrgovic deserved a decision win over Yoka in the 2016 Olympics, but he's not really improved since then..

[DrDuke]

A super duper matchup, let's get it on. I guess, Yoka wins. He won the rivalry at the ams, he is doing better at the pros, fighting the superior opposition, looking more fluid, composed and diverse.

[JamesPhilips]

Yoka will probably win this.

Hrgovic has declined during the past few years due to soft opposition, he looked slower in his last two fights and his defense is rather poor. But he does punch hard so you never know.

Hrgovic deserved a decision win over Yoka in the 2016 Olympics, but he's not really improved since then..

Yoka has hardly set the world on fire and is chinny. He got gifted the gold, he's also lost over a third of his am fights..... which is a poor record for a top amateur. He got kod 3 times too. He beat Filip twice but both controversial decisions.

I see Filip wining by stoppage. 10 rounds

[knockout]

Hrgovic about 10kg heavier than when he was an elite amateur I think .

Not sure that’s the best idea, as others have said he looks slower than before although does hit hard

Yoka is fairly elusive but a fit and sharp Hrgovic might catch up with him .

[oogiebe]

I wouldn't know who to root against.

[golden_labrador]

Yoka will keep it boring but win on points. will still watch though in case Hrg knocks him out

[H8Usernames]

Could be a fun fight to watch.

[Enlightened-One]

There are a lot of similarities between the Yoka-Hrgovic and Joyce-Dubois bouts.

Two hyped-up unproven prospects (Dubois & Hrgovic) being favoured to defeat their underappreciated rivals possessing better resumes than themselves (Joyce & Yoka).

I see Yoka struggling for few rounds dealing with Hrgovic’s defensively irresponsible Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em robot aggressive fighting style, but the Frenchman will eventually gain the winning momentum from the fifth round onwards (as the Croatian tires), en route to upsetting the betting odds to gain a decision victory.

[margaret thatcher]

would filly be the betting fave?

yoka's up 8-2 here and has had much more momentum lately, especially if the fights in france id expect most to favour him. bookies would be creating a great opportunity if they made big fill the fave

[gregregegg]

Think it will be very very close odds wise, bookies might have it dead even...

If i were making the odds id think

-filly by KO and yoka by points are about the same odds.

- yoka by KO will be slightly more likely that fili by points.

resulting in a slight yoka fav.

[morm]

Ooh yeah thats it!

[Enlightened-One]

would filly be the betting fave?

I suspect Yoka would only be considered the favourite if you’re French or a die-hard boxing aficionado, but mainstream casuals and Eastern Europeans will inevitably buy into the Hrgovic hype spouted off by the likes of Eddie Hearn, the Sauerland’s and the media.

So I reckon the betting odds will ultimately favour Hrgovic, since there seems to be a lot more "noise" about his allegedly "fearsome... ducked by all" reputation.

There just seems to be a lot more media coverage (certainly from an English-speaking perspective) surrounding Hrgovic, but perhaps I'm wrong?

[Enlightened-One]

Yoka has hardly set the world on fire and is chinny. He got gifted the gold, he's also lost over a third of his am fights..... which is a poor record for a top amateur. He got kod 3 times too. He beat Filip twice but both controversial decisions.

BoxRec's amateur records are usually incomplete.

Anyway, here's a summary of Yoka's resume:
• 2016 Olympic gold medallist
• 2015 World championship gold medallist
• Boasts victories in the amateurs against the likes of: Joseph Parker, Joe Joyce (twice), Ivan Dychko, Filip Hrgovic (twice), Mihai Nistor (twice), Frazer Clarke, Magomed Omarov and Jose Larduet
• His victories in the pros over the following fighters surpass every single one of Hrgovic's wins to-date: Johann Duhaupas, Christian Hammer, Alexander Dimitrenko, David Allen, Petar Milas, Joel Djeko, Jonathan Rice and Michael Wallisch

I'm not saying you're wrong about Hrgovic though, because he might surprise many of us to defeat Yoka.

But I just felt you were being a tad harsh on the Frenchman, because I feel he's better than you portray him to be.

And his resume clearly speaks volumes about his proven talent.

[Bandog]

So Yoka is willing to fight for "peanuts" after all. Good fight.

[Enlightened-One]

So Yoka is willing to fight for "peanuts" after all. Good fight.

Did you really think Yoka earns $1.5m per bout, like Ortiz and Parker?

[JamesPhilips]

Yoka has hardly set the world on fire and is chinny. He got gifted the gold, he's also lost over a third of his am fights..... which is a poor record for a top amateur. He got kod 3 times too. He beat Filip twice but both controversial decisions.

BoxRec's amateur records are usually incomplete.

Anyway, here's a summary of Yoka's resume:
• 2016 Olympic gold medallist
• 2015 World championship gold medallist
• Boasts victories in the amateurs against the likes of: Joseph Parker, Joe Joyce (twice), Ivan Dychko, Filip Hrgovic (twice), Mihai Nistor (twice), Frazer Clarke, Magomed Omarov and Jose Larduet
• His victories in the pros over the following fighters surpass every single one of Hrgovic's wins to-date: Johann Duhaupas, Christian Hammer, Alexander Dimitrenko, David Allen, Petar Milas, Joel Djeko, Jonathan Rice and Michael Wallisch

I'm not saying you're wrong about Hrgovic though, because he might surprise many of us to defeat Yoka.

But I just felt you were being a tad harsh on the Frenchman, because I feel he's better than you portray him to be.

And his resume clearly speaks volumes about his proven talent.

Hmmmmm I mean I get it about the boxrec amateur records and his achievements but he has a fair few losses and much worse won / loss percentage than Camarelle 2008, AJ 2012, Jalolov 2020. Yoka has much lower stoppage percentage than Joshua and Jalolov. Yoka’s wins against Hrgovic and Joyce were also dodgy. And Yoka has been Ko’d 3 times including in WSB by a fat Turkish dude.

I just have a feeling his chin will suddenly go and he’ll get flattened spectacularly by someone. He’ll
Become the French David Price. Ok not that bad but even just looking at him his chin is Suspect. Also I haven’t liked him since they robbed Joe Joyce so him and his wife could complete the wife and husband PR story.

[Enlightened-One]

I performed some research into the ages of Filip Hrgovic’s best opposition in the pro ranks at the time he fought them:

• Amir Mansour (46 years of age)
• Eric Molina (37½ years of age)
• Kevin Johnson (39½ years of age)
• Rydell Booker (40 years of age)
• Gregory Corbin (38½ years of age)
• Pavel Sour (35 years of age)
• Emir Ahmatovic (35 years of age)
• Raphael Zumbano (36½ years of age)

Note: the ages are rounded to the nearest half year.

I think it’s fair to say that Filip Hrgovic hasn’t just faced weak opposition, it’s worse than that, because most of the time he’s been matched against journeymen that were also well past-their-primes.

Most of these guys (when they were at their very best) were never that good to begin with, but the fact Hrgovic fought them when they were also over-the-hill is something to seriously consider when evaluating Filip’s performances when he fought these men.

[Enlightened-One]

Yoka has hardly set the world on fire and is chinny. He got gifted the gold, he's also lost over a third of his am fights..... which is a poor record for a top amateur. He got kod 3 times too. He beat Filip twice but both controversial decisions.

BoxRec's amateur records are usually incomplete.

Anyway, here's a summary of Yoka's resume:
• 2016 Olympic gold medallist
• 2015 World championship gold medallist
• Boasts victories in the amateurs against the likes of: Joseph Parker, Joe Joyce (twice), Ivan Dychko, Filip Hrgovic (twice), Mihai Nistor (twice), Frazer Clarke, Magomed Omarov and Jose Larduet
• His victories in the pros over the following fighters surpass every single one of Hrgovic's wins to-date: Johann Duhaupas, Christian Hammer, Alexander Dimitrenko, David Allen, Petar Milas, Joel Djeko, Jonathan Rice and Michael Wallisch

I'm not saying you're wrong about Hrgovic though, because he might surprise many of us to defeat Yoka.

But I just felt you were being a tad harsh on the Frenchman, because I feel he's better than you portray him to be.

And his resume clearly speaks volumes about his proven talent.

Hmmmmm I mean I get it about the boxrec amateur records and his achievements but he has a fair few losses and much worse won / loss percentage than Camarelle 2008, AJ 2012, Jalolov 2020. Yoka has much lower stoppage percentage than Joshua and Jalolov. Yoka’s wins against Hrgovic and Joyce were also dodgy. And Yoka has been Ko’d 3 times including in WSB by a fat Turkish dude.

I just have a feeling his chin will suddenly go and he’ll get flattened spectacularly by someone. He’ll
Become the French David Price. Ok not that bad but even just looking at him his chin is Suspect. Also I haven’t liked him since they robbed Joe Joyce so him and his wife could complete the wife and husband PR story.

Like I said before, BoxRec’s amateur records are incomplete (as per Vasiliy Lomachenko, GGG & Luis Ortiz), which means you’re evaluating Yoka’s resume percentages using incorrect data.

Therefore, if your stats are wrong, then this will result in you calculating erroneous percentages and formulating incorrect conclusions.

Also, context is key whenever you’re evaluating performances.

The Frenchman was only 19 years of age when he suffered his only legitimate KO defeat to Erislandy Savon (with the Cuban winning three world championships – one of them at youth level).

Yoka’s stoppage loss to Demirezen in the WSB would be considered very premature by professional standards and the Omarov technical knockout defeat was due to injury (retiring between rounds).

I just think there’s an inevitable learning curve in boxing, whereby it’s normal for young fighters to occasionally suffer defeats during their teenage years (or even early twenties), but these are valuable opportunities to learn from mistakes and improve.

We shouldn’t read too much into ancient history, because today’s 29-year-old iteration of Tony Yoka is nothing like the teenager that was competing at the highest level in the amateurs more than a decade ago.

To be fair, the same applies to Filip Hrgovic too, because he also tasted defeat several times when he was only at the beginning of his boxing career. We shouldn’t read too much into those losses either.

[H8Usernames]

Yoka has hardly set the world on fire and is chinny. He got gifted the gold, he's also lost over a third of his am fights..... which is a poor record for a top amateur. He got kod 3 times too. He beat Filip twice but both controversial decisions.

BoxRec's amateur records are usually incomplete.

Anyway, here's a summary of Yoka's resume:
• 2016 Olympic gold medallist
• 2015 World championship gold medallist
• Boasts victories in the amateurs against the likes of: Joseph Parker, Joe Joyce (twice), Ivan Dychko, Filip Hrgovic (twice), Mihai Nistor (twice), Frazer Clarke, Magomed Omarov and Jose Larduet
• His victories in the pros over the following fighters surpass every single one of Hrgovic's wins to-date: Johann Duhaupas, Christian Hammer, Alexander Dimitrenko, David Allen, Petar Milas, Joel Djeko, Jonathan Rice and Michael Wallisch

I'm not saying you're wrong about Hrgovic though, because he might surprise many of us to defeat Yoka.

But I just felt you were being a tad harsh on the Frenchman, because I feel he's better than you portray him to be.

And his resume clearly speaks volumes about his proven talent.

Hmmmmm I mean I get it about the boxrec amateur records and his achievements but he has a fair few losses and much worse won / loss percentage than Camarelle 2008, AJ 2012, Jalolov 2020. Yoka has much lower stoppage percentage than Joshua and Jalolov. Yoka’s wins against Hrgovic and Joyce were also dodgy. And Yoka has been Ko’d 3 times including in WSB by a fat Turkish dude.

I just have a feeling his chin will suddenly go and he’ll get flattened spectacularly by someone. He’ll
Become the French David Price. Ok not that bad but even just looking at him his chin is Suspect. Also I haven’t liked him since they robbed Joe Joyce so him and his wife could complete the wife and husband PR story.

Who was the fat turkish dude that koed him?

[Enlightened-One]

BoxRec's amateur records are usually incomplete.

Anyway, here's a summary of Yoka's resume:
• 2016 Olympic gold medallist
• 2015 World championship gold medallist
• Boasts victories in the amateurs against the likes of: Joseph Parker, Joe Joyce (twice), Ivan Dychko, Filip Hrgovic (twice), Mihai Nistor (twice), Frazer Clarke, Magomed Omarov and Jose Larduet
• His victories in the pros over the following fighters surpass every single one of Hrgovic's wins to-date: Johann Duhaupas, Christian Hammer, Alexander Dimitrenko, David Allen, Petar Milas, Joel Djeko, Jonathan Rice and Michael Wallisch

I'm not saying you're wrong about Hrgovic though, because he might surprise many of us to defeat Yoka.

But I just felt you were being a tad harsh on the Frenchman, because I feel he's better than you portray him to be.

And his resume clearly speaks volumes about his proven talent.

Hmmmmm I mean I get it about the boxrec amateur records and his achievements but he has a fair few losses and much worse won / loss percentage than Camarelle 2008, AJ 2012, Jalolov 2020. Yoka has much lower stoppage percentage than Joshua and Jalolov. Yoka’s wins against Hrgovic and Joyce were also dodgy. And Yoka has been Ko’d 3 times including in WSB by a fat Turkish dude.

I just have a feeling his chin will suddenly go and he’ll get flattened spectacularly by someone. He’ll
Become the French David Price. Ok not that bad but even just looking at him his chin is Suspect. Also I haven’t liked him since they robbed Joe Joyce so him and his wife could complete the wife and husband PR story.

Who was the fat turkish dude that koed him?

Yoka suffered a very premature stoppage defeat to Ali Eren Demirezen in the WSB.

[H8Usernames]

Hmmmmm I mean I get it about the boxrec amateur records and his achievements but he has a fair few losses and much worse won / loss percentage than Camarelle 2008, AJ 2012, Jalolov 2020. Yoka has much lower stoppage percentage than Joshua and Jalolov. Yoka’s wins against Hrgovic and Joyce were also dodgy. And Yoka has been Ko’d 3 times including in WSB by a fat Turkish dude.

I just have a feeling his chin will suddenly go and he’ll get flattened spectacularly by someone. He’ll
Become the French David Price. Ok not that bad but even just looking at him his chin is Suspect. Also I haven’t liked him since they robbed Joe Joyce so him and his wife could complete the wife and husband PR story.

Who was the fat turkish dude that koed him?

Yoka suffered a very premature stoppage defeat to Ali Eren Demirezen in the WSB.

Thanks for the information. I just took a look at that fight. Are you sure that you think that it was a premature stoppage? Looked pretty legit to me.

Jesus how awful Tony looked in there, he must be a horrible fighter. And this guy has wins over Filip Hrgovic? Filip looks like he is 10 times the fighter Tony is.

After watching that thing I have no interest in seeing Tony in the ring again, the fellow is nothing and a nobody.

[Enlightened-One]

Thanks for the information. I just took a look at that fight. Are you sure that you think that it was a premature stoppage? Looked pretty legit to me.

The stoppage was premature in comparison to what we’re accustomed to seeing in the pros.

But to be fair, stoppages in the unpaid ranks usually seem premature to me.

Jesus how awful Tony looked in there, he must be a horrible fighter.

Yes you're right. He looked terrible against Demirezen.

And this guy has wins over Filip Hrgovic? Filip looks like he is 10 times the fighter Tony is.

After watching that thing I have no interest in seeing Tony in the ring again, the fellow is nothing and a nobody.

After the Demirezen defeat, later on in the same year, Tony Yoka went on the beat Filip Hrgovic, Joe Joyce and Ivan Dychko, en route to capturing a gold medal at the 2015 world championships.

The following year, Tony Yoka defeated Filip Hrgovic and Joe Joyce again to claim an Olypic gold medal.

I’m not trying to persuade you into thinking that Yoka is a world-beater, because he probably isn’t, but those are the facts about his amateur career.

He's a much better fighter today than he was back then.