Hrgovic believes Itauma can bounce back strong

Filip Hrgovic thinks Moses Itauma can come back stronger if he moves past the shame of his first loss in pro boxing, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

Hrgovic stopped the previously unbeaten Itauma in the ninth round to win the vacant IBF heavyweight title at the O2 Arena in London on August 29. Hrgovic was the underdog and became Croatia’s first heavyweight world champion.

Itauma started the fight strong and knocked Hrgovic down in the second round. He seemed to have control over Hrgovic but began to tire badly from the eighth round. His corner threw in the towel in the ninth round.

The 34-year-old Hrgovic admitted that he was outboxed early on. “In my whole career, in 20 years of boxing, I was never outboxed in any sparring or any fight,” Hrgovic said.

“But this kid outboxed me. On that night, I think he will beat anyone apart from myself. But that night I refused to lose.” Hrgovic praised the 21-year-old southpaw, saying, “He is really good. He is special. Very fast, very talented, and he countered whatever I tried with his speed and timing.”

Hrgovic added, “I was never in the ring before with such a talented kid, with such a fast guy. You have some fast guys, but they are small heavyweights. You can handle them with your power, but this kid is fast and big. He has great IQ and great talent.”

Hrgovic pointed out that the loss would test Itauma’s mental strength. “It was a big shock for him, a big humiliation, so maybe it is the end of his career if he is not mentally tough. If he recovers from this loss, mentally, it will be hard for anyone to ever beat him again. A lot of people, after that kind of loss, they never come back. So, it will be a hard journey for him,” he said.

After the fight, Hrgovic mentioned that Itauma was the best opponent he had faced but needed more experience. He knew from the first round that the young fighter would run out of energy.

Itauma responded in an Instagram video on August 30, saying he fell short against “the more experienced man” and that he would take the lessons into future fights. His promoter, Frank Warren, said Itauma picked up a leg injury and needed to work on his ring skills.

Hrgovic is now looking for a unification fight with WBC champion Agit Kabayel or WBO champion Daniel Dubois. However, the IBF could order him to face mandatory challenger Frank Sanchez first.