Moses Itauma is hoping to kickstart a long and dominant reign at the top of the heavyweight division, following in the footsteps of the man he considers the division’s greatest.
Itauma has not boxed beyond the sixth round in his 14 professional contests to date, going the distance in two six-rounders and knocking out all other opponents in the fifth or earlier during his rapid rise into title contention.
As a result, he is now positioned as the WBO’s mandatory challenger, meaning he should get a shot at the victor of Daniel Dubois and Fabio Wardley’s upcoming rematch if he wishes, but he is also well poised to challenge for both the WBA and IBF world titles.
Next up, he faces his toughest test yet, taking on Croatian world title hopeful Filip Hrgovic at The O2 Arena in London on August 29.
Following the launch press conference for that show, Itauma was asked who he believes is the greatest heavyweight fighter of all time and, in a clip shared on his social media, the Kent-based sensation picked fellow Brit Lennox Lewis.
“Lennox Lewis, I think that he is the greatest heavyweight ever.
“I don’t want to emulate anyone’s career, I want to have my own career, but I think that Lennox Lewis is the best heavyweight of all time and the best heavyweight that this country has produced – even if he was raised in Canada.”
Lewis notably defeated Evander Holyfield to become the undisputed heavyweight champion, and also overcame the likes of Mike Tyson and Vitali Klitschko in his career.
He did suffer defeats to Oliver McCall and Hasim Rahman, but was able to avenge both, meaning ‘The Lion’ beat every man he ever faced in the professional ring.
Lewis has praised Itauma as the division’s next big thing, but urged patience in his rise.
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