Filip Hrgovic (19-1, 14 KO) praised the power and toughness of his defeated opponent, David Adeleye, after their Fight of the Night war last Saturday night at the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Hrgovic said that Adeleye had caught him with better punches than Daniel Dubois, Zhilei Zhang, or anyone in his career. Those two are known for their power, but Hrgovic rated Adeleye above them. His problem is that he just didn’t throw enough.
Hrgovic defeated Adeleye by a 10-round unanimous decision by the scores:
The two warriors, Hrgovic & Adeleye, stole the show from the headline act between Moses Itauma and Dillian Whyte with the back-and-forth battle in the eighth round. This fight was more entertaining to watch than the slaughter in the main event. Hrgovic had Adelye down with a right hand, and he looked broken, ready to be finished.
Adeleye’s Surprise Eighth-Round Attack
Adeleye got to his feet and unleashed a counter-assault on Hrgovic, catching him by surprise and hitting him with everything in a sudden burst of offense.
It’s a miracle that Hrgovic stayed on his feet because he was hit with nine solid headshots in that sequence alone. Hrgovic wearily clinched and arm-punched his way out of trouble to see the end of the eighth.
this is boxing🤷🏻♂️🥊 pic.twitter.com/H1TFRN9C2y
— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) August 16, 2025
Hrgovic Praises Adeleye’s Power
“He’s a good puncher. He has good power. I think he caught me with better shots than Dubois, than Zhang, than anyone in my career,” said Hrgovic to iFL TV about Adeleye. “He’s fast, he has good power, and I think it was a good fight.”
The right-hand shot that Adeleye initially hurt Hrgovic with in the eighth round would have done the same to anyone in the heavyweight division. It was a big one that caught him unaware, as he’d just floored Adeleye less than a minute earlier.
Like in his other defense, Adeleye had the potential to win, but he wasn’t throwing punches when under fire and just soaking up punishment from Hrgovic. If he could learn to throw sustained combinations like he did in the eighth against Hrgovic, he’d be hard for anyone to beat.
Last Updated on 08/17/2025
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