FUTURE SHOCK
start earning for the family he adores. So a week before his 20th birthday, the Slovakian-born Brit starred on another enormous Riyadh Season show, standing undefeated in 10 pro fights. The latest test came in the shape of “The Tower,” Demsey McKean, who had extended world-class Filip Hrgovic into the 12th and had trained incredibly hard for this alongside Ring/IBF cruiserweight champ Jai Opetaia. I took to the DAZN mic and felt the vibrations from Itauma’s gliding heavyweight feet as the sweet southpaw jab and crisp left hand went to work. “This is the 11th professional outing for the sizzling southpaw Moses Itauma as he looks to catapult himself to the higher echelons of the heavyweight division in double-quick time” – my opening lines. I wouldn’t need many. “Ridiculous talent – the variation, the spite, the know-how, always setting traps … razor-sharp hands,”
become the youngest heavyweight champion in history,” I bellowed. Echoes of when “Iron” Mike Tyson burst onto the scene, destroying all in his wake. That brutality, excitement – I remember so vividly as a kid thrilled by such heavyweight power. Tyson, of course, holds the record for becoming the youngest-ever world heavyweight champion, and Moses only has until May if he is to break that. In November 1986, Tyson knocked Trevor Berbick all around
the ring and then out to announce a new era in boxing – but that was in his 28th fight. Moses Itauma was only in his 11th when he simply stole the Saudi show. Shockwaves were felt around the ring. And weeks later, The Ring rewarded the young heavyweight by rightfully naming him the 2024 Prospect of the Year at a magical gala dinner in London. Moses looked cool as a cat, gliding through the legends in the spectacular Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College, and he was, as ever, full of humility, modesty and charm. “I’m in a room with all the greatest fighters around the world, all the people I grew up watching – I guess I hope to emulate what all you guys are doing in the near future – obviously I am only 20 years old. My future’s bright, and hopefully you get to see my face a lot more.” Keeping it short but meaningful, he sauntered offstage, saying, “That’s enough from me!” Beautiful like his ring movement. Every time I bump into Moses – interview him, chat with him – I am really impressed.
has – astonishing!” I love the sporting “genius” with that X-factor. At just 17, legendary snooker player Ronnie O’Sullivan won his first ranking event and still somehow remains as sparkling as ever on the green baize. Pro soccer player Jude Bellingham played for Birmingham City at 16, and look at him now. Michael Owen was just 18 when he scored his wonder goal against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup. Moses, like his promoter, Frank Warren, supports Arsenal. Myles Lewis-Skelly is breaking through this season at just 18, while Ethan Nwaneri is only 17. Carlos Alcaraz was breathtaking as he became the youngest to top the world singles tennis rankings at 19, and Luke Littler has blown up darts even more than it had already been blown up by capturing the PDC World Darts Championship at 17! Littler annihilated Michael van Gerwen’s previous record by seven years. Old enough? Outrageously good enough! In just over two years, the Itauma rise has been equally compelling. Blessed with a superb ring IQ and guided expertly, Moses turned pro in January 2023 at Wembley with a first- round KO of Marcel Bode. Six more educational fights followed that year, and four in his breakthrough 2024. Nine of his 11 wins have now come super-fast – and all within a total of just 23 rounds. With so many on the outside raving about this boxing phenomenon, I was to have a bizarre Itauma occurrence “inside” – on the Isle of Sheppey. As I drove down to the deepest, darkest corner of South East England on a bleak midwinter's afternoon – past where my childhood hero Barry McGuigan and his talented boxing family reside – the words of Francis Warren, son of Frank, blasted through
my car speaker. “Moses Itauma is the next Tiger Woods, Lionel Messi – I think he’ll have reach like Serena Williams. He’s going to be a monster of sport,” predicted Itauma’s manager. “Moses is a blue-chip fighter who stands out – he’s so mature, understands the business, does not stop working. Training comes first. It’s not just what he’s capable of doing inside the ring, but what he does outside it.”
Because he knew Moses and he knew him well! The only thing I was allowed to write on was a ripped piece of cardboard, but I needed more on Moses. “I first saw him at 8 or 9,” Matt began. “He’s the best I have ever seen. There is no one like him. I boxed as an amateur, but when the Itaumas came into our gym … wow! “Karol, his older brother, won gold at the Youth Olympics and is a good prospect now, but Riko was just different at St. Mary’s ABC. “Did you know that when
“Moses Itauma is the next Tiger Woods, Lionel Messi – I think he’ll have reach like Serena Williams. He’s going to be a monster of sport.”
Riko won his European gold – he knocked every opponent out in the first round!” I wondered why some call him Moses while others – like Ben and Barry Smith – refer to him as Enriko or Riko. For promotional reasons, his middle name of Moses was chosen to lead. Karol agreed that Moses was a strong name for a heavyweight. Moses told
adds “Dazzling” Darren Barker. “And the angles,” chips in the brilliant analyst Barry Jones. “How he dips his shoulders, punches upwards, a shovel shot, screw shot …” All three of us are struck by his clever movement, ring
Crossing the bridge onto the Kent island – famous for its many shipwrecks – my daughter Jessamy and I headed for one of the three remote Sheppey prisons. She studies criminology and we had managed to secure a visit to HMP Elmley. Then a sweet, serendipitous moment. Keys, phones and possessions in the locker, guards escorting us into the bowels of “Elmley” – but little did I know a “Bowler” was about to come into the Itauma story. After a few minutes, I was waved over to the prison cafe. Tucked away sorting the teas was an enthusiastic man who said, “Adam, Adam – let’s talk boxing. Let’s talk Moses Itauma.” I mean, I am writing a feature for The Ring on this very fighter! I was introduced to Matt Bowler, who told me he was a boxing coach who had known Moses for years. Jessamy hoped he was an inmate – I wasn’t quite sure – and didn’t really care!
me he just doesn’t care. Enriko Itauma became Moses Itauma to us. His inner circle calls him what they like. “He just won a host of tournaments – schools, Juniors, Youth Europeans and the Heavyweight Youth Gold,” Matt continued. “Riko did school, played football (soccer), but the ring was his home.” Matt’s face then lit up from behind the small prison coffee counter. “Riko still lives in Chatham – he is such a family man. It’s so good to see and so exciting. I know I am biased, but honestly, he is going to be a massive superstar. I have been saying it from day one. He’s inspired all the new Kent kids at St. Mary’s and Ropes and Glory. Riko works so hard – he is not going to be stopped. Heavyweight champion this year, mark my words, and you watch him go!” Even inside the prisons, they are talking about him. “They absolutely love Moses in here,” Matt said.
Elite trainer Ben Davison, who has of course guided Fury and AJ, told me it’s Moses’ “emotional maturity” that sets him apart. “It’s unbelievable for a fighter of his age … His love for the sport, his hard work, incredible raw talent – he’s so enjoyable to train,” offered Davison. “The coordination, the skill level of a smaller- weight fighter. He’s such a coachable athlete, and it is that emotional maturity he
awareness, the way he uses the jab to the body, and then … “OHHHH!” we collectively gasp.
Seconds later, another
…
“OHHHH!” McKean is floored twice, clinically dispatched
amid an eerie, immediate whip of conclusion. The poor Australian could not fathom what had unfolded. “Itauma wins in one … Demsey McKean is blown away, and maybe [Itauma] could
Itauma is 6-foot-2 and his fighting weight is between 240 and 250 pounds.
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