LONDON — Moses Itauma says he is now at peace with the first defeat of his professional career after Filip Hrgovic stopped him in the ninth round in August to claim the vacant IBF heavyweight title, a fight the 21-year-old had controlled before exhaustion took hold.
Itauma had looked on course for victory, dropping and repeatedly rocking the Croatian through the first eight rounds before disaster struck. Having bounced around the ring landing eye-catching blows, he suddenly looked stuck in quicksand as Hrgovic showcased his durability and then his killer instinct to force the stoppage. "For a long time, I couldn't accept it had happened," Itauma said. "I was winning the fight so comfortably, and then all of a sudden my body just started shutting itself down."
"But even though I didn't get the decision I wanted, I was proud of my performance," he said. "For the knowledge I had, for the talent I had, and for the experience I had, I put on a good show. I'll be back. The identity of being a boxer is still deeply rooted in me, so just because I lost doesn't mean that that's going to change."
Itauma, now 14-1 (12 KOs), said Hrgovic did not surprise him technically but his resilience proved decisive, and admitted he only realised he was in danger deep into the final round. "Skill-wise, [Hrgovic] didn't surprise me, but he's very durable," he observed. "It was only a couple of minutes into round nine that I started moving in slow motion, and he was in fast motion. It was like I just couldn't do anything."
The Briton, who noted he had knocked out Jermaine Franklin when others had not troubled him, said perspective has helped him process the setback ahead of an expected return in January. "That was the third round I've ever lost in my boxing career; it just happened to be for the heavyweight championship of the world at 21 years of age," he said. "I'm not tripping over it. I attempted greatness, and I fell short."