Heavyweight champion says he is willing to face Moses Itauma after previous negotiations failed

Moses Itauma was in talks for a heavyweight title shot, only for Filip Hrgovic to instead emerge as a likely opponent for his next outing.

The 21-year-old is the leading challenger with both the WBO and WBA, despite having not yet tested the waters at world level.

His most notable victory came in March, when he stopped Jermaine Franklin in round five, but Itauma has otherwise faced a lack of credible names.

This could change in August, though, as the unbeaten talent is expected to take on Hrgovic, a top 10 contender who would represent his toughest test thus far.

Should he emerge victorious, Itauma could then face WBA ‘regular’ champion Murat Gassiev, who says he remains open to their potential showdown.

According to the 32-year-old, their matchup was initially discussed in February, only for Itauma’s team to put their negotiations on hold and explore alternative options.

This has left Gassiev with the opportunity to headline a show at the VTB Arena, Moscow, against Olympic gold medallist Tony Yoka on July 11.

After that, the former world cruiserweight champion has told talkSPORT that he would be willing to revisit a fight with Itauma.

“[In February] I said, ‘OK, let’s talk. Some negotiations, some talks, promoters, managers, teams, no problem just give me a location, time, date and let’s fight.

But it’s boxing – this is a serious business. Maybe it’s not the perfect time for this fight right now. Maybe after July we will fight, or maybe next year. Moses has good team, good promoter, good manager, good coach and maybe his team make take this fight [against Hergovic] because maybe this fight best for him right now because he’s young, maybe he doesn’t have big experience, maybe for his career this fight with Hrgovic is perfect.”

While Gassiev currently holds the ‘regular’ title, there is a chance he could be elevated to full champion if Oleksandr Usyk vacates his WBA belt.

Such an outcome would then make their fight more appealing for Itauma, who appears to be closing in on a world title shot either way.