Boxing-Itauma vs Hrgović: Fight Previews & Key Information

Itauma vs Hrgović: About the Upcoming Fight

Moses Itauma is expected to go against Filip Hrgović in the battle for the vacant IBF World Heavyweight Championship belt. The bout is scheduled for August 29, 2026, at O2 Arena in London. In the upcoming bout, Moses Itauma will be appearing undefeated. This time, he will be working hard towards his ambition of becoming one of the youngest world heavyweight champs. Hrgović is an experienced boxer who has won 20 bouts but lost only once.

Itauma vs Hrgović: Fight Overview

The fight between Itauma and Hrgović will be important for both boxers, as the heavyweight division is highly competitive. On the one hand, Itauma comes into the ring with an undefeated record. He has earned recognition as one of Britain’s best young heavyweights. Hrgović is more experienced and has faced tougher opponents in his boxing career. In this fight, Itauma has a chance to make his mark against an established contender at the top level. However, Hrgović will look to stop the young challenger’s progress and show that experience counts in heavyweight fights.

Itauma vs Hrgović: Fight Details

Itauma vs Hrgović: Full Fight Card

Where to Watch Itauma vs Hrgović Fight?

The Itauma vs Hrgović fight is available worldwide by PPV and Ultimate Tier subscription, depending on your location.

Global access: Stream the match live using DAZN PPV via the DAZN app or website.

United Kingdom and selected regions: This match will also be available via Virgin TV using DAZN PPV and as a free pre-show livestream via Amazon Prime Video.

Itauma vs Hrgović: Fighters’ Bio and Stats

Moses Itauma

Filip Hrgović

Itauma vs Hrgović: Fighters’ Background

Moses Itauma

Early Life

Moses Itauma was born in Kežmarok, Slovakia, to a Nigerian father and a Slovak mother. He is the younger brother of light-heavyweight boxer Karol Itauma. His family later moved to England due to racism and better prospects. Itauma was just three years old when his family came to settle in Chatham, Kent. As a young boy growing up, he liked Prince Naseem Hamed very much and adopted parts of his style in boxing. His brother Karol got him into boxing at the age of nine. Itauma tried football for a bit but went back to boxing at St Mary’s ABC in Chatham. He was just sixteen years old when he was sparring with the world cruiserweight champion Lawrence Okolie.

Amateur Career

Itauma was not beaten throughout his entire amateur career until he chose to turn pro. He ended up winning 24 bouts in his amateur career, out of which 11 were knockouts. A successful amateur career included winning gold medals in the Schools, Juniors, and Youth European championships. In addition, Itauma secured the Heavyweight Youth World Gold Medal. All of these made Itauma one of the most promising heavyweight boxers in his age group.

Professional Career

Itauma made his professional debut in boxing against Marcel Bode at Wembley Arena in January 2023. He came in a bang by defeating Bode in merely 23 seconds of the match. Itauma won the vacant WBO Intercontinental heavyweight title in his bout against Ilja Mezencev in May 2024. He managed to defend the title by defeating an experienced Polish heavyweight fighter named Mariusz Wach in another second-round stoppage. Then Itauma went on to defeat Demsey McKean in the opening round of December 2024. His impressive fights earned him the Prospect of the Year award in 2024 from The Ring magazine. In 2025, he knocked out Mike Balogun and won in the first round against Dillian Whyte. This victory against Whyte helped Itauma win the Commonwealth title too. Then he defeated Jermaine Franklin in a fifth-round knockout in March 2026. This was the first knockout defeat of Franklin in his career.

Filip Hrgović

Early Life

Filip Hrgović was born on June 4, 1992, in Zagreb, Croatia, to Petar and Iva Hrgović. At eight years old, he started playing basketball, hoping to lose weight. Hrgović won a national championship while playing for Dubrava, but an injury to his back and knees ended his basketball career. After trying out swimming for a little while, he discovered boxing at the age of 13. Hrgović started training at the Leonardo boxing club in Zagreb under the guidance of Leonardo Pijetraj. Even though his mother did not like his choice of sport, Hrgović continued with boxing professionally. Hrgović’s sportsmanship brought him many important Croatian honors.

Amateur Career

Hrgović has had an excellent amateur boxing career due to victories in World, European, and Olympic bouts. He got the gold medal in the 2010 AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships by beating his future heavyweight rival, Tony Yoka. Later, he also participated in Olympic qualifiers and World Championship bouts and gained invaluable experience from fighting against top opponents. In 2015, Hrgović won the European Amateur Boxing Championships by beating Florian Schulz with a unanimous decision. Hrgović was also recognized as the Boxer of the Month by AIBA in 2015. His last bout in amateur boxing took place in 2016 Rio Olympics. He managed to get into the semifinals but lost a split decision to Tony Yoka. Nevertheless, Hrgović won an Olympic bronze medal for Croatia.

Professional Career

Hrgović launched his professional boxing career in September 2017 by stopping his opponent Raphael Zumbano in the first round. He went on to win bouts and established himself as a highly promising heavyweight boxer. Among Hrgović’s early wins were fights against Pavel Sour, Tom Little, and Filiberto Tovar. Hrgović won the WBC International heavyweight championship by beating Amir Mansour in 2018. Later, he earned significant wins against Kevin Johnson, Éric Molina, and Rydell Booker. In 2022, Hrgović defeated Zhilei Zhang in a big IBF title eliminator bout by unanimous decision. He stopped Demsey McKean and Mark de Mori and further improved his status as one of the best heavyweights to watch. Hrgović lost in the eighth round to Daniel Dubois in a TKO bout in June 2024. But he bounced back with wins over Joe Joyce, David Adeleye, and David Allen. Now, he is scheduled to meet Moses Itauma in the vacant IBF heavyweight title bout.

Itauma vs Hrgović: Career Records

Moses Itauma

Filip Hrgović

Itauma vs Hrgović: Fight Analysis

Itauma is slightly favored due to his speed, power, and momentum from recent fights. But Hrgović can compensate with more experience against heavyweights. Itauma’s combination attacks and quickness could be an issue for Hrgović during the fight.

Itauma finishes his bouts quickly due to his dangerous style of fighting. Hrgović is a well-trained fighter with excellent fundamentals and physical strength, as well as extensive experience fighting professional bouts. Hrgović can push Itauma and keep him engaged. Itauma will probably take advantage of his speed and quickness to attack his opponent with powerful combinations. For Hrgović, it will be important to manage distance with his size.

In general, it seems that Itauma has the upper hand in terms of explosiveness and youth. But Hrgović can prove himself thanks to his experience.

The Pick: Moses Itauma via KO