![\"Filip](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1788074173_808_6000.jpg\")
Filip Hrgovi\u0107 celebrates after defeating Moses Itauma to win the IBF heavyweight title at the O2 Arena in London. Photograph: Peter Cziborra\/Action Images\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\nUpdated at\u00a020.10 EDT<\/p>\n
Key events<\/p>\n
That\u2019s all for now. Thanks as always for following along with us and be sure to check out Donald McRae\u2019s ringside report from tonight\u2019s stunner right here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Prince Naseem Hamed: ‘How wrong was I?’<\/p>\n Prince Naseem Hamed, speaking on the Dazn broadcast, says he was surprised by Itauma\u2019s approach: \u201cMy immediate reaction is I\u2019m so surprised that he could just go out there and for them to tell him just to keep punching and go fully at it when he knew \u2013 if he knew \u2013 he had to reserve himself. There was no reserve tank.<\/p>\n \u201cBut you know what? This may be the best thing that ever happens to Moses, simply because of the experience and for him to know what he\u2019s got to do next time. And he knows he can\u2019t just run away with just trying to blast somebody out.<\/p>\n \u201cBut do you know what? How wrong was I? I was wrong. Happy to say I\u2019m wrong. I said I could be wrong and I may be wrong. The fact is, it was a good fight. He didn\u2019t even lose a round, but he just put everything into them five, six, seven, eight rounds.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107 is already looking beyond tonight \u2013 and the new IBF champion has little interest in simply satisfying his mandatory obligation.<\/p>\n Frank Warren initially said Frank Sanchez, who stepped aside to allow tonight\u2019s fight to happen, would be next. Hrgovi\u0107 immediately had other ideas.<\/p>\n \u201cCome on, man. What Frank Sanchez? I want a unification,\u201d he said, pointing toward ringside at Daniel Dubois, who holds the WBO title. \u201cI want this guy right here, Daniel Dubois. Unification. If he wins next fight, I want [WBC champion] Agit Kabayel. I want a unification. Frank Sanchez will wait. He\u2019ll get another step-aside. He\u2019ll make money without fighting and everyone\u2019s happy.\u201d<\/p>\n Kabayel, also at ringside, was only too happy to entertain the idea. \u201cWhy not? We make this fight,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m ready. I fight everyone. Kurdish power fights with Croatian power. Why not? Let\u2019s go.\u201d<\/p>\n Filip Hrgovi\u0107 (right) celebrates with promoter Frank Warren (left) after defeating Moses Itauma to win the IBF heavyweight title at the O2 Arena in London on Saturday. Photograph: Steven Paston\/PA<\/p>\n Warren was less committal, acknowledging the obligation to Sanchez but adding: \u201cIf we can work it out, we\u2019ll work it out. The name of the game is for all these guys to fight each other and find out who\u2019s the best.\u201d<\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107 had one other request: a homecoming. \u201cFrank, please give me one fight in Croatia,\u201d said the country\u2019s first world heavyweight champion. \u201cI\u2019m fighting 20 years already all around the world. I need a fight in Croatia.\u201d<\/p>\n Warren\u2019s response: \u201cWe will do our best to make that happen. You deserve it.\u201d<\/p>\n That prompted Hrgovi\u0107 to take stock of the improbable night.<\/p>\n \u201cAgainst all odds, coming in London against the most talented young guy in the world, killer southpaw, new Mike Tyson, how they call him,\u201d Hrgovi\u0107 said. \u201cComing in London against all odds, 34 years, and making this. It\u2019s incredible. God is great.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.23 EDT<\/p>\n Warren: Itauma suffered leg injury<\/p>\n Frank Warren has revealed that Itauma had suffered a leg injury, although he offered no further details. He backed the 21-year-old to recover from his first professional defeat.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s got to go back and get back to the drawing board and he can come again,\u201d Warren said. \u201cHe\u2019s only a young man. He\u2019s 21 years of age. It was an opportunity. He took it and it wasn\u2019t to be.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Hrgovi\u0107: ‘I was losing every round’<\/p>\n \u201cLet me tell you something,\u201d an emotional Hrgovi\u0107 says. \u201cIt was not me tonight. It was Jesus Christ in me. Holy Spirit. Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. It was not me. I was losing every round. I was outboxed. And I don\u2019t know from where I got energy in that [ninth] round. And it was really not my strength. It was Holy Spirit.<\/p>\n \u201cHe gave me strength in this camp to endure everything, to have the best camp of my life. He put me in touch with this great coach, Abel Sanchez. I was in the best shape of my life because of him. He put me in touch with my manager, Keith Connolly, who changed my life, the best manager in business. And all my team, my nephew Antonio, my chef, my physiotherapist, sparring partners \u2013 he set up everything to have a perfect camp and to have a perfect fight. So thanks to my Lord Jesus Christ.\u201d<\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107, who had confidently predicted before the fight that he would send Itauma \u201cback to high school\u201d, said his experience ultimately proved the difference.<\/p>\n \u201cLook, chin is important,\u201d Hrgovi\u0107 said. \u201cHe\u2019s an amazing fighter. I want to thank him for accepting this fight, to give me a chance to become a new superstar in the heavyweight division. I\u2019m the present and he\u2019s definitely the future.\u201d<\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107 reacts after Saturday\u2019s win. Photograph: Richard Pelham\/Getty Images<\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107 described Itauma as \u201cone of a kind\u201d and \u201cthe best I\u2019ve been in the ring with\u201d, but said the 21-year-old\u2019s lack of experience began to show as the fight wore on.<\/p>\n \u201cHe gassed out,\u201d Hrgovi\u0107 said. \u201cI felt the pace of the fight. I knew I was losing rounds, but I knew that I had that pace in my favor. He was gassing out. He needs more experience, but he\u2019s one of a kind.\u201d<\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107 said he sensed almost immediately that Itauma\u2019s blistering start would eventually catch up with him. Despite being comprehensively outboxed early and dropped in the second round, the Croatian believed his younger opponent was expending energy at an unsustainable rate.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom the first round, I saw he was gassing out,\u201d Hrgovi\u0107 said. \u201cI saw he started that fast. I knew he was going to gas out at some point. And I knew when my chance came, I needed to push. And that\u2019s what I did.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.01 EDT<\/p>\n What an extraordinary turnaround at the O2. Itauma looked sensational early, his speed and power giving Hrgovi\u0107 all sorts of problems, and he dropped the Croatian in the second round. But Hrgovi\u0107 absorbed everything the 21-year-old threw at him and simply refused to go away.<\/p>\n Then the fight turned. Itauma began to tire badly after the sixth and Hrgovi\u0107\u2019s experience, chin and persistence took over. By the ninth, Itauma was completely spent. Hrgovi\u0107 battered him around the ring until Ben Davison threw in the towel, completing a remarkable comeback.<\/p>\n It is a stunning upset \u2013 and a historic one. Hrgovic becomes Croatia\u2019s first world heavyweight champion, while Itauma suffers his first professional defeat after being anointed by so many as the division\u2019s next king before he had even won a belt.<\/p>\n Filip Hrgovi\u0107 celebrates after defeating Moses Itauma to win the IBF heavyweight title at the O2 Arena in London. Photograph: Peter Cziborra\/Action Images\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.10 EDT<\/p>\n Itauma’s corner throws in the towel in round nine!<\/p>\n Round 9<\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107 is battering a completely sapped Itauma in the opening minute. Itauma missing a lot of punches and missing them wildly. Hrgovi\u0107 lands a massive right hand that sends Itauma reeling into the ropes. Itauma is exhuasted! Hrgovi\u0107 pours it on, unloading shot after shot on Itauma and he can barely stay on his feet! Are they going to stop this fight? Itauma\u2019s corner has thrown in the towel! Unbelievable!<\/p>\n Moses Itauma\u2019s corner throws in the towel as referee Howard Foster stops his IBF heavyweight title fight against Filip Hrgovi\u0107 at the O2 Arena. Photograph: Richard Pelham\/Getty ImagesFilip Hrgovi\u0107 celebrates after knocking down Moses Itauma during their vacant IBF heavyweight title fight at the O2 Arena. Photograph: Steven Paston\/PAShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.09 EDT<\/p>\n Round 8<\/p>\n Itauma begins to pour it on in the second half of the round, battering Hrgovi\u0107 around the ring and opening a cut over his eye. Forty-five seconds to go and Itauma is pummeling away, going for the stoppage. The referee is taking a closer look. But Hrgovi\u0107 fires back! He\u2019s battering an exhausted Itauma, who sold out for the stoppage and is breathing heavy! This is a live fight!<\/p>\n Guardian\u2019s unofficial score: Itauma 10-9 Hrgovi\u0107 (Itauma 79-72 Hrgovi\u0107)<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Round 7<\/p>\n Itauma is into the seventh round for the first time in his career. Itauma continues to score to the head and body with a higher workrate, but Hrgovi\u0107 is taking the shots well and both men look equally pressed for stamina. Itauma clips Hrgovi\u0107 with a right hand in the final seconds that moves him backwards.<\/p>\n Guardian\u2019s unofficial score: Itauma 10-9 Hrgovi\u0107 (Itauma 69-63 Hrgovi\u0107)<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Round 6<\/p>\n Itauma is outthrowing and outlanding his opponent to the head and the body. Hrgovi\u0107 rallies back nicely in the final minute, chin-checking Itauma with a right hand and following it up with three or four more blows upstairs. But the 21-year-old closes strong again, landing another big shot at the bell.<\/p>\n Guardian\u2019s unofficial score: Itauma 10-9 Hrgovi\u0107 (Itauma 59-54 Hrgovi\u0107)<\/p>\n Filip Hrgovi\u0107 in action against Moses Itauma during their IBF heavyweight title fight at the O2 Arena in London. Photograph: Peter Cziborra\/Action Images\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.20 EDT<\/p>\n Round 5<\/p>\n Speed kills. It\u2019s been the difference in this fight so far. Hrgovi\u0107 looks exhausted. The only strategy appears to be enduring the punishment around long enough to test Itauma\u2019s stamina. Itauma detonates a concussive uppercut on Hrgovi\u0107\u2019s chin in the final seconds of the round but Hrgovi\u0107 somehow remains upright.<\/p>\n Guardian\u2019s unofficial score: Itauma 10-9 Hrgovi\u0107 (Itauma 49-45 Hrgovi\u0107)<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Round 4<\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107 appears lightyears more relaxed and settled than in the first round, but he\u2019s been cut and is still in there with a dangerous foe who\u2019s got the whole arena behind him. The strategy is clearly to let Itauma gas out and it\u2019s not a bad thought, but Ituama is still outthrowing and outlanding him. What a chin from Hrgovi\u0107. How many more of these shots can he take?<\/p>\n Guardian\u2019s unofficial score: Itauma 10-9 Hrgovi\u0107 (Itauma 39-36 Hrgovi\u0107)<\/p>\n Moses Itauma lands a punch on Filip Hrgovi\u0107 during their IBF heavyweight title fight at the O2 Arena in London. Photograph: Richard Pelham\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.19 EDT<\/p>\n Round 3<\/p>\n The pace has slowed markedly into the third. Hrgovi\u0107 is coming forward now and scoring with power shots including a thudding right cross, but Itauma takes it well. The closest round of the fight and Hrgovi\u0107 has done just enough to shade it.<\/p>\n Guardian\u2019s unofficial score: Itauma 9-10 Hrgovi\u0107 (Itauma 29-27 Hrgovi\u0107)<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Hrgovi\u0107 down in round two!<\/p>\n Round 2<\/p>\n Hrgovi\u0107 is down early in the round! Itauma catches him with a counter right hook for a flash knockdown. The Croatian quickly makes his feet, but the chasm in hand speed between these two is alarming. Then Hrgovi\u0107, who has been almost completely shut down for a round and a half, finally starts letting his hands go in the final minute. Perhaps he\u2019s beginning to get a read on Itauma\u2019s timing. Still, another terrific round for the youngster.<\/p>\n Guardian\u2019s unofficial score: Itauma 10-8 Hrgovi\u0107 (Itauma 20-17 Hrgovi\u0107)<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Round 1<\/p>\n There\u2019s the bell! The meet in the center of the ring and it\u2019s a big right hook early from Itauma that lands on Hrgovi\u0107\u2019s temple. Deafening cheers for Itauma from the rollicking crowd. Good punch variety early for Itauma, who is really on the front foot here throwing loaded shots from all angles. Hrgovi\u0107 has yet to really get anything going through the first 90 seconds. A heavy left hand from Itauma lands and sends Hrgovi\u0107 reeling backwards. Another head-body combination from Itauma. Hrgovi\u0107 looks wobbly. A dream start from the 21-year-old from Chatham.<\/p>\n Guardian\u2019s unofficial score: Itauma 10-9 Hrgovi\u0107 (Itauma 10-9 Hrgovi\u0107)<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The waiting is over. The final instructions have been given by referee Howard Foster, the seconds are out and we\u2019ll pick it up with round-by-round coverage from here!<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The fighters are making their entrances for the main event. First out is Hrgovi\u0107, emerging to Geni Kameni, the rousing Croatian nationalist anthem by the controversial rock singer Thompson. Now here comes Itauma, making his way to the ring in a black sleeveless vest to a medley of Sister Nancy\u2019s Bam Bam and Crystal Waters\u2019 Gypsy Woman (She\u2019s Homeless). He\u2019s moving with purpose, practically at a canter.<\/p>\n Moses Itauma makes his ringwalk before facing Filip Hrgovic for the vacant IBF heavyweight title at the O2 Arena. Photograph: Steven Paston\/PAShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.58 EDT<\/p>\n One final newsy note before Itauma and Hrgovic make their ringwalks. Chantelle Cameron has just beaten Mikaela Mayer by unanimous decision in Birmingham to become the unified three-belt champion at 154lb. Cameron prevailed by scores of 97-93, 97-93 and 96-94 after 10 rounds. Alycia Baumgardner calls it<\/a> her favorite fight of the year! Claressa Shields wants<\/a> the winner and the loser!<\/p>\n Meanwhile, back at the O2, we\u2019re going through the national anthems of Croatia and the United Kingdom ahead of the main event fighter entrances.<\/p>\n Share<\/a> It\u2019s a night for the heavyweights, with various big men at contrasting stages of their careers in attendance. Agit Kabayel, Daniel Dubois, Fabio Wardley, Joe Joyce and Derek Chisora are at ringside. I hope we don\u2019t ever see the last two in a fight again but Dubois and Wardley, who waged a thrilling battle earlier this year, have just announced the date of their rematch. I hope Wardley has had enough time to recover from the damage he absorbed in May. Kabayel, meanwhile, was gifted the WBC world title in June, after Oleksander Usyk gave up his belts.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, at lightweight, Sam Noakes was too young and fresh for Denys Berinchyk, the 38-year-old Ukrainian, in the last bout on the undercard, winning a wide decision on points. And Noakes did make his ring walk to the mighty Dolly Parton.<\/p>\n Not too long now before Moses Itauma and Filip Hrgovi\u0107 \u2026<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Frank Warren has just made some news from the ring at the O2. Daniel Dubois and Fabio Wardley will meet again for the WBO heavyweight title at the same venue on 17 October.<\/p>\n Wardley has exercised his rematch clause after their bloody first encounter<\/a> in Manchester, when he floored Dubois twice in the opening round before Dubois took control and ultimately won. The roles will be reversed this time: Dubois enters as champion, Wardley as challenger.<\/p>\n Also announced: Northern Ireland\u2019s Anthony Cacace will defend his WBA junior-lightweight title against Liverpool\u2019s Nick Ball on 19 December in Belfast.<\/p>\n Fabio Wardley (left) and Daniel Dubois (right) pose with promoter Frank Warren after their WBO heavyweight title rematch was announced for 17 October at the O2 Arena. Photograph: Richard Pelham\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.40 EDT<\/p>\n Sam Noakes has scored the biggest win of his career, outclassing former world champion Denys Berinchyk to win a 10-round unanimous decision. The 29-year-old from Kent controlled the fight throughout, winning by scores of 100-90, 99-91 and 98-92.<\/p>\n That\u2019s it for the undercard at the O2. The final countdown to Moses Itauma v Filip Hrgovi\u0107 is on.<\/p>\n Sam Noakes (right) lands a punch on Denys Berinchyk during their lightweight fight at the O2 Arena. Photograph: Richard Pelham\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Elsewhere in England, Caroline Dubois has retained her WBC and WBO lightweight titles with a unanimous-decision win over Amelia Moore in Birmingham. Dubois dropped Moore in the fifth round before the challenger rallied to make the fight more competitive than the 99-90, 99-90 and 98-91 scorecards suggested.<\/p>\n Afterwards, Dubois became embroiled in a heated exchange<\/a> with Alycia Baumgardner, the WBA, WBO and IBF champion at 130lb, adding the latest chapter to the simmering war of words<\/a> between the promotional stablemates that has been building for the past year.<\/p>\n Caroline Dubois (right) clashes with Alycia Baumgardner (left) after retaining her WBC and WBO lightweight titles with a unanimous-decision win over Amelia Moore in Birmingham. Photograph: Matthew Lewis\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a017.17 EDT<\/p>\n There was no shortage of needle at Friday\u2019s weigh-in, where the bad blood that has simmered throughout fight week finally boiled over. After an expletive-laden face-off at Spitalfields Market, Itauma shoved Hrgovi\u0107 off the stage, sending the Croatian stumbling backwards. Hrgovic quickly climbed back up and struck Itauma in the face before security separated them.<\/p>\n \u201cI just lost it a little bit,\u201d Itauma admitted afterwards, later adding: \u201cI had a little itch, and I just had to scratch it.\u201d The flashpoint followed days of Hrgovi\u0107 provoking<\/a> the 21-year-old, repeatedly calling him a \u201ckid\u201d and \u201cdelusional\u201d and promising to \u201csend him back to high school\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n There is a gnawing contradiction at the heart of Saturday\u2019s promotion. Itauma is being put forth as boxing\u2019s next big star, with the chance to become the youngest world heavyweight champion since Mike Tyson nearly 40 years ago.<\/p>\n Yet in the US, Itauma v Hrgovi\u0107 costs $59.99 on Dazn PPV, while UK viewers must fork over \u00a324.99 and Australians A$39.99. Those prices are on top of a standard Dazn subscription, although the fight is included for subscribers to the more expensive Ultimate tier. This is not an unfamiliar arrangement in modern boxing, but it is a strange way to build an audience around a 21-year-old fighter who is supposed to help carry the sport into its next era.<\/p>\n If boxing wants Itauma to become a mainstream attraction, surely the priority should be getting him in front of as many eyeballs as possible. Instead, potential new fans are being asked to clear multiple financial barriers simply to watch him fight.<\/p>\n The Canadian journalist Ariel Helwani was rather less diplomatic about it<\/a> this week.<\/p>\n \u201cPutting a fight like Moses Itauma v Filip Hrgovic this weekend behind the pay-per-view wall is actually criminal,\u201d Helwani said. \u201cThat is truly criminal. What are you doing? Enough already. Stop putting these fights behind multiple paywalls. They did it last weekend too with the L\u00f3pez-Romero fight<\/a>. You want people to fall in love with these fighters? You got to make them accessible.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Correction: there\u2019s one more preliminary fight before Noakes v Berinchyk. And it was a quick one. Nelson Hysa, aka the Albanian Eagle, just made quick work of the badly overmatched Thomas Narmo, scoring a brutal technical knockout early in the second round.<\/p>\n Nelson Hysa knocks out Thomas Narmo during their heavyweight non-title fight at the O2 Arena. Photograph: Richard Pelham\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a> The arena looks pretty close to full which is a positive surprise. There was speculation earlier in the week that ticket sales had been a little sluggish and when I arrived just before seven this evening they were still selling seats to people who had just walked up to the 02. This is only Moses Itauma\u2019s 15th fight and, while his face has been plastered across London\u2019s buses the past few weeks, he is still a 21-year-old fighter who is at the start of his ascent to elite-level boxing.<\/p>\n This could be the fight, against a tough and ambitious Filip Hrgovi\u0107, which could mark the big breakthrough for Itauma. At the same time there is a risk that the callow prodigy might be exposed. I reckon that Itauma will be too good for Hrgovi\u0107, but the atmosphere is building and there is a nice little frisson of uncertainty in the air.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Tale of the tape<\/p>\n Here\u2019s how Itauma and Hrgovi\u0107 measure up ahead of tonight\u2019s main event. Itauma is the younger man by 13 years and gives away an inch and a half in height and three inches in reach, but he will enter the ring as the heavier fighter. The 21-year-old tipped the scales at 241.7lb, compared with 232.6lb for Hrgovic. The Croatian brings a significant edge in professional experience, having boxed 105 rounds to Itauma\u2019s 31.<\/p>\n Tale of the tape: Moses Itauma v Filip Hrgovi\u0107<\/a>Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a016.30 EDT<\/p>\n Here\u2019s where things stand in the order of play. Constantin Ursu has just retained his British and Commonwealth welterweight titles with an eighth-round stoppage of Ben Vaughan. The unbeaten champion was pushed hard by a game Vaughan before a severe cut over his right eyebrow brought the contest to a premature end at the O2. Ursu improves to 16-0 (7 KOs) with the TKO win.<\/p>\n That leaves one more undercard fight before tonight\u2019s main event: a scheduled 12-round lightweight scrap between Sam Noakes and Denys Berinchyk.<\/p>\n Ben Vaughan (right) lands a punch on Constantin Ursu during their British and Commonwealth welterweight title fight at the O2 Arena. Photograph: Richard Pelham\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a>Preamble<\/p>\n Hello and welcome to London\u2019s O2 Arena, where we are counting down to one of the more intriguing heavyweight attractions of the year and, just maybe, the launch of a new era in boxing\u2019s bellwether division.<\/p>\n Moses Itauma is only 21 years old, unbeaten in 14 paying fights and already being spoken about in the sort of glowing terms normally reserved for fighters who have spent years at or near the top of the division. Tonight the prodigiously gifted southpaw from Chatham can become the second-youngest heavyweight champion in history, behind only Mike Tyson, when he faces Filip Hrgovi\u0107 for the vacant International Boxing<\/a> Federation title at the O2 Arena.<\/p>\n The hype is not difficult to understand. Itauma has speed uncommon for a man his size, concussive power and an ability to attack from angles that Barry Jones believes<\/a> separates him from almost every other heavyweight. But for everything we have seen, there is plenty we haven\u2019t. Itauma has boxed only 31 professional rounds. He has never been dragged into the deep waters of a difficult fight, where Andy Lee believes the questions surrounding him become less technical than psychological.<\/p>\n Britain\u2019s Moses Itauma can become the youngest world heavyweight champion since Mike Tyson nearly 40 years ago. Photograph: Richard Pelham\/Getty Images<\/p>\n That is where Hrgovi\u0107 comes in. The 34-year-old Croatian has been a professional for nine years and lost only once (to Daniel Dubois in 2024<\/a>). He has spent the buildup dismissing Itauma as a \u201cdelusional kid\u201d, even suggesting that becoming champion so young could \u201cruin his soul\u201d. It\u2019s an idea Itauma has not entirely dismissed. He has spoken candidly this week about the burden of sudden fame and his desire to \u201cstart off like Mike Tyson started, but not end up how Mike Tyson ended\u201d.<\/p>\n It should be mentioned the widely recognized king of the division is still Oleksandr Usyk, the unbeaten former undisputed heavyweight champion from Ukraine who relinquished his remaining world title belts<\/a> in June but insists he has not retired. But with the old order beginning to clear, Itauma is ideally placed to collect the spoils and establish himself as the leading candidate to inherit Usyk\u2019s throne when the time comes.<\/p>\n We\u2019ll have round-by-round updates, key moments and instant reaction in this space. Stay with us.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime here\u2019s Donald McRae\u2019s lookahead<\/a> to tonight\u2019s fight.<\/p>\n![\"Donald](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1788074174_77_Donald_McRae,_L.png\")
Donald McRae<\/p>\nDonald McRae<\/p>\n