Filip Hrgovic ripped up the script and shattered Moses Itauma’s world-title dream as the Briton appeared to punch himself out in an extraordinary heavyweight contest in London, Saturday night.
Itauma, 21, controlled most of the fight and scored a second-round knockdown but faded as his relentless output caught up with him.
A lover of Nigeria, where his Eket-born father hails, Itauma, after one of his recent boxing successes had visited both his mother’s country, Slovekia, and Nigeria to showcase his feats, but he said it was only in the latter that he was appreciated.
His words: “I was saying to my mum, ‘nobody even shook my hand in Slovakia and said congratulations’.
“I go to Nigeria as the same person and they treat me very well. And then my mum was like, ‘yeah, but that’s true Nigerians, they’re naturally happy, they’re naturally grateful’.”
In the fight, Hrgovic weathered the storm and piled on the pressure in the ninth.
With Itauma barely able to stand, his legs unsteady and body swaying before slumping in the corner, his team threw in the towel.
Itauma – who needed medical attention before leaving the arena on a stretcher – had been a heavy favourite after tearing through his first 14 opponents and was spoken about as heavyweight boxing’s next superstar.
“He is the best I have been in the ring with, but he needs more experience. I knew I was losing the round, but I knew that I had the pace in my favour. He needs more experience, but he is one of a kind,” Hrgovic said.
“From the first round, I saw his gassing out. He started fast. I knew he was going to gas out. I knew when my chance came I needed to push. That is what I did.”
With the vacant International Boxing Federation (IBF) title on the line, victory would have made Itauma the second-youngest world champion in the division’s history.
Instead, his inexperience began to show as his Croatian opponent – an Olympic bronze medallist whose only previous professional defeat came against Daniel Dubois – survived everything Itauma threw at him before completing a remarkable turnaround.
Hrgovic – wearing the red and white checks of his country – made his entrance first to a wall of boos, before the mood inside the O2 Arena flipped as Itauma emerged to a huge roar – taking his time and soaking up the reception.
The crowd had made its allegiances clear after a fiery build-up which included Itauma shoving Hrgovic, the Zagreb man slapping him back and plenty of verbal sparring.
Itauma came out with real intent, landing straight lefts from his southpaw stance. Hrgovic is known for his durability but struggled to keep pace with the Briton’s speed early on.
Round Two
Early in the second, a right hook knocked Hrgovic off-balance and his glove touched the canvas.
Oasis star Noel Gallagher and boxing legend Prince Naseem Hamed were among those watching as the crowd gasped at almost every Itauma punch, whether it landed or not.
Round Three
But by the end of the third, Itauma – who had boxed just 26 professional rounds before his first world-title fight – was already breathing heavily.
There had also been questions over his chin, simply because it had never really been tested. Hrgovic began landing the occasional heavy shot but Itauma took them well and fired straight back.
Round Five
A fight in the crowd momentarily took attention away from the action in the fifth before an Itauma uppercut in the closing seconds brought the focus back to the ring.
Rounds Six, Seven
Itauma continued to fire combinations but Hrgovic was barely budging. A huge right landed on the bell in the sixth and another followed in the seventh, yet the Croatian simply walked through them.
Round Eight
The Briton was well ahead but, rather than box his way towards victory, he continued to chase the knockout. A flurry in the eighth backed Hrgovic on to the ropes and had him in trouble, but Itauma was grimacing between exchanges and looking increasingly spent.
Round Nine
By now the danger was clear. Hrgovic came out with renewed purpose in the ninth and landed a thudding right which sent Itauma staggering backwards, almost through the ropes.
The youngster somehow stayed upright but his legs had gone. Hrgovic continued to press and when Itauma slumped into his corner, exhausted and barely able to defend himself, referee Howard Foster waved off the contest as the towel came in.
For Itauma, this was supposed to be a coronation.
Instead, he leaves the O2 Arena with questions over whether the step up came too soon.
He has time to rebuild and there will be a strong feeling that, with a little more experience, this night could have ended very differently.
*PHOTO CAPTION: Itauma (right) on the receiving end as Hrgovic goes in for the kill.
