Itauma’s Promoter Hints at July Fight, Opponent Soon

Moses Itauma’s promoter, Frank Warren, says they’ll be “sorting out an opponent” for him this week for his next fight in July. His son, Francis Warren, mentioned journeymen Otto Wallin and Jermaine Franklin as possible opponents for newly ranked #1 WBO heavyweight contender Itauma (12-0, 10 KOs) to fight next.

Itauma’s Next Fight Plans

Warren asks, “How do I get him rounds?”. Well, it would help if he started matching him against opposition with an actual pulse, who can fight. Put Itauma in with one of these gold-minted heavyweights in a sink-or-swim fight:

– Agit Kabayel
– Bakhodir Jalolov
– Joseph Parker
– Richard Torrez Jr.

I’d hate to think what a talent like Jalolov, Kabayel, or Torrez Jr. would do to Itauma. They could turn him into mincemeat, and no amount of soft matchmaking could create the hype that was once there with him. If Itauma at least tried to fight one of those killers, I’d respect him and give him credit if he loses.

Unfortunately, those predators aren’t being mentioned for his next fight. The journeymen, Jermaine Franklin and Otto Wallin, are. Those are essentially the same type of fighters that Itauma has been fighting. There’s no upgrade whatsoever with those two.

That’s why it’s better if fighters are brought along against quality opposition so the fans aren’t angry when they see them step up after years and get blown out. They should be weeded out early if they lack the talent, rather than artificially made to look good.

If Itauma loses, his promoters would know what they got with him. He looks vulnerable to me, just like his brother, Karol, who was matched softly in the first nine fights of his career, creating a 9-0 record with 7 knockouts, before disaster struck when veteran Ezequiel Osvaldo Maderna knocked him out. There was a lot of hype behind Karol as well before his loss.

Those names failed to excite fans on social media, who view those fighters are more of the same fodder-level opposition. Itauma, 20, has been fighting since he turned pro in 2023. In Moses’ fight last Saturday, he fought former NFL player Mike Balogun and, predictably, knocked him out in two rounds in Glasgow, Scotland.

Murat Gassiev had already stopped the 36-year-old Balogun in two rounds. It’s unclear if that was why he was selected for Itauma. Boxing fans would like to see Moses Itauma start fighting contenders now that he’s ranked #1 by the WBO and being hyped as the next star in the heavyweight division.

Matchmaking Makes Fighters

“How do I get him rounds? When guys are big punchers, they’re big punchers. We’ve made a couple of fights where we thought we’d get a few rounds, and he’s taken guys out who are durable fighters,” said promoter Frank Warren to BoxNation when asked how he gets heavyweight contender Moses Itauma rounds.

The guys Itauma has been fighting would lose to almost any heavyweight in the top tier. Beating the dreadfully poor fighters Itauma has been competing with creates a false picture of his actual talent. Those guys would lose to anyone.

Itauma’s last six opponents:

– Mike Balogun
– Demsey Mckean
– Mariusz Wach
– Ilja Mezencev
– Dan Garber
– Michal Boloz

“He’s not far off from fighting for the big one [heavyweight world title]. He’ll be fighting in July, and hopefully, we’ll be sorting out an opponent this week. The organizations are watching him because they like what they see. Once he gets in the ring, he’s a monster. All those names [Jermaine Franklin and Otto Wallin] for a young fighter coming through, all those names will sound good.”

Otto Wallin is coming off a loss and looks entirely shot at this stage of his career. He was always just a light hitter with an amateur style. He gave Tyson Fury problems in 2019 because the ‘Gypsy King’ was never that good of a fighter either.  Again, matchmaking. You can make anyone look great with the perfect matchmaking, and we’re seeing that with Moses Itauma.

“In a heartbeat,” said Warren when asked if he’d be interested in matching Itauma against Justis Huni if the Australian is victorious in his clash against Fabio Wardley on June 7th.

Huni has a decent chin. If he hangs in there for six or seven rounds against Itauma, he’ll knock him out and end his career before it begins. Still, Huni is not a good heavyweight either. I’d rather see Itauma face a gold-minded quality heavyweight like Torrez Jr, Jalolov, or Parker.