Wach names Itauma as his toughest opponent

Polish heavyweight fighter Mariusz Wach has said that British-Nigerian boxer Moses Itauma is the hardest hitter he has faced in his 21-year career. This statement comes just before Wach’s fight against Tyson Fury on Friday in Pattaya, Thailand.\n\nWach is known for his toughness. He has taken big punches from boxers like Wladimir Klitschko, Dillian Whyte, Alexander Povetkin, Martin Bakole, and Jarrell Miller without ever being knocked down.\n\nIt was not until his 44th pro fight against Russian fighter Arslanbek Makhmudov that Wach was finally knocked down. Even then, he got back up before the referee stopped the fight.\n\nThe only other boxer to knock Wach down is Itauma. Itauma stopped Wach in just two rounds when he was brought in to help during the young Briton’s streak of quick wins.\n\n“It would be Itauma who hit the hardest. It was the speed and explosiveness of the punches. But, of course, everyone at heavyweight hits hard. Wladimir Klitschko also had a very powerful punch,” Wach told talkSPORT.com.\n\nWhen asked about Itauma's future in boxing, Wach said Itauma’s next fight against Filip Hrgovic will show how far he can go. He believes that a strong win in that match would set Itauma on the path to becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion because of his talent.\n\nWach’s fight with two-time heavyweight world champion Fury is meant to get Fury ready for a big all-British fight with Anthony Joshua. If Fury beats Wach and Joshua wins against his own opponent, Kristian Prenga, a day later, they plan to set up the fight later this year.