FUTURE SHOCK
“That fellow over there, Callum who works in here, Damien who cooks the prison food – he even made an [antenna] out of a tin can to get some reception to tune into the last fight!” It was amazing to hear how much Moses is admired on the inside as well as the outside – and how far and wide the love stretches. There’s a huge fan club in the Slovakian town of Kezmarok.
Sports colleague and long-reigning WBO cruiserweight titleholder) always did this. Wherever we went. It was and still is his anchor. “My favorite is the pads, my least is out running – but I have to do that two or three times a week,” Moses explained. I enjoy our chats. I think everyone does with Moses. He is intelligent, chill and knows where he is heading. There
“One hundred percent, I would have Usyk next,” Moses told me. Direct, honest, surprising, brilliant! He seems less concerned with breaking the Tyson record and more about fighting the very best. Surely further experience is needed. “Rounds come in sparring, don’t worry. I am used to being under the lights now, on the big stage, and I’ll do the rounds easy. Hopefully I get a title shot by the end of the year.” “What sets you apart, Moses?” I asked. “No idea! Everything put
I’m not sure I have quite as much sway as Frank – but I walked into our meeting and told him. “Ha ha ha,” said Warren Sr. “Isn’t he great? I love his attitude. By the end of the year, he’ll be a world champion. It’s not a sprint; it’s a marathon. It’s one thing becoming world champion, but then you have to sustain it. Mike Tyson got there and threw it all away. [Itauma has] the best team behind him – let me do my job!” So far, so good for Moses Itauma – the 6-foot-2½ southpaw who may just be the next best thing. Yes, he needs to prove his durability and step up to a higher level within the crowded heavyweight landscape – but look at the speed
Moses was born in a fishing village on the fast-flowing Poprad River and often returns, but his Slovakian mum Martina and his Nigerian dad Charles brought the family to Britain seeking a better life for their children. The family stability was rooted early, and this has very much been the building blocks around Moses. Karol – a fellow professional – and another older brother, Charles, help with the “Itauma business.” Add the training
“I loved watching Naseem Hamed and Floyd Mayweather. They paved the way. I am not trying to emulate them, just take pieces … follow in their footsteps.”
together. You need talent and hard work. Must be comfortable in a fight despite crowd opinions. “One thousand may want
you to win, some hear the 10 who want you to lose – you must be able to handle that. Mentality, courage and the will to win. Mainly I think it’s being able to make the adjustments inside a fight. That’s the magic.” “And the power …” I added. “Ben says you are just unbelievably strong.” “He’s talking rubbish,” Moses smirked. “AJ and Fabio hit harder. Mind you,
trio of Davison, Lee Wylie and Barry Smith with the golden promoters of heavyweights – the Warrens – and it is some team assembled. Matt’s words were ringing in my ears for days, but with Elmley and Chatham in the rearview mirror, I was keen to reach the main man. Getting Moses out of the gym was a fight in itself. Francis, Ben – someone get me Moses on the phone! “He’s still on the heavy bag,” Barry Smith shouted, “Maybe 20 minutes, actually an hour – you can’t stop him, mate!” “Sorry, Adam, but I just love the gym,” Moses eventually told me. He’s got this lovely manner – intense, ambitious but calm, calculated and so respectful. “I’m in the gym now because I am bored,” Moses said. “As soon as I get the call to fight, we kick-start, but if I am not in a gym, even on holiday, I feel very insecure. I feel out of place.” Johnny Nelson (my former Sky
just isn’t that nasty, arrogant tone. “I’m only thinking about the sport of boxing, Adam. I am not bothered with all this global superstar stuff. “Leave me to do the fighting.” Moses is very much his own man. “I loved watching Naseem Hamed and Floyd Mayweather. They paved the way. I am not trying to emulate them, just take pieces … follow in their footsteps,” he told me. I wanted to know when the penny really dropped. “I first realized when I was tipped in to spar Lawrence Okolie at just 15 and I found it incredibly comfortable. That led to AJ, Dubois – Fury recently – and I have been asked to go to Usyk’s camp too.” I love his intent and told him that spending time in Gandia at Usyk’s HQ was mind-blowing, even for a seasoned broadcaster. Surely it would be invaluable. The big question: When do you want to actually fight him?
warhorse who once upon a time went the distance with Wladimir Klitschko. “Mature too,” concluded Wach. Back to Ben’s highlight of “emotional maturity.” “It’s how he conducts himself,” Ben continues. “AJ had that, and [Itauma] has seen it in the gym. He has the capability of beating anyone and becoming one of the greatest ever. But it’s all about longevity.” “The first time I saw him was [when he was] 14,” Francis Warren adds. “His footwork and head movement were unreal. There’s also been great family support around him; everyone believes in him, but his feet are firmly on the ground. Usually someone goes out there and says something negative, but no one has. He loves to travel, he’s a well-mannered man, and it is about
at which he’s cut through. Once in a generation, something special happens in sport. Virtually everyone with a respected voice is excited about him. 35 fights. 35 wins. 24 as an amateur, 11 as a pro. I go back to Matt Bowler: “I don’t think he’ll ever lose. I’m not just saying that because he’s from our club. I have never seen anyone like him. He’ll never, ever get beat,” he declared. “Matt’s not the one fighting,” laughs Moses. “But it will be nice if that happens.” Matt Bowler and the lads at HMP Elmley will be cheering loudly all the way. Moses Itauma has the world at his dancing feet. Inside and outside of his beloved squared circle.
Itauma stopped Ilja Mezencev on the Usyk-Fury undercard last May.
I haven’t been hit by myself!” That made me laugh. A lot.
“I’m just trying to enjoy it, Adam – I have a great team; my family will always humble me if I need to be.” Humility is already there in droves. Mixed with a vicious ring intent and that delicious quiet, measured ambition. This looks to be the potent recipe for a heavyweight who has the advantage of being fast, a southpaw, clever and unpredictable. “It was the angles,” vastly experienced former world title challenger Mariusz Wach told me a few weeks after he was taken out in two by Itauma last summer at the O2 in London. “The speed, the surprise – I couldn’t see or read the punches.” Another accolade, from a 49-fight
taking the right opportunities and not rushing him. Ability point of view, yes, but from an experience point of view, we’re not quite there yet. We’ve all got a job to do here.” “Where will you be at 35?” I ask Moses. “I honestly don’t know. I live day to day. I train hard. I want to prove myself. I believe I am aware of what I could be capable of.” I loved that line, and I told him. I said I’m about to see Frank; do you have a message for him? “Let’s slice things up. Tell Frank I want Usyk next. And if it happens, I’ll say thank you, Adam!”
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