SOLE BELIEVER
a pro, he has only fought twice in his own country. Hrgovic is now in his prime. The fights that have made him, the Itauma fight being made, the IBF belt becoming vacant and being on the line – in Hrgovic’s mind, it is all “coming at the right time, happening for a reason and with thanks to God.” I catch him early in the morning at home in Croatia. He reflects on his relationship with his late father, Petar, and the things the old man taught him about humility: about being authentic, about being himself. All the traits that he carried into the fight week against Itauma, which, seen retrospectively, saw Hrgovic carry himself like a champion, show his charm, great physical presence and self-belief. In many ways, these are the qualities that make him unique. And now – popular. “My father was the man responsible for making me who I am,” says Hrgovic, who lost his father in 2022. “He was quite a simple man, but very special. He always taught me to be myself, and he definitely taught me to be humble.
ambitions may hold. Firstly he describes the 10 days he has spent with the two people he loves most. It has been a quiet time, away from public view. Forget the granite chin, the towering physique, the presence and power. Instead, he has held his wife’s hand, walked in the evenings, talked quietly about their life. Celebrated and thanked Marinela for her love and support. He has played in the swimming pool with his tiny child, whom he clearly adores. He has been father and husband. The real roles. Not the alter-ego serving the DNA inside that makes him one of the leading warriors on the planet. A fact now underlined by the world title belt around his waist. But in that space he has allowed himself, Hrgovic has been able to reflect in a deeper way on an extraordinary personal journey, against the odds, not having things his own way and battling against “the lack of ecosystem and structure” for boxers in his homeland, which has been a stumbling block throughout a career spent largely on the road. In nine years and 22 fights as
I think about this most days.” There is emotion in his voice. They were very, very close. “He is no longer with us, but I know he was looking down on me when I walked to the ring to win the world title.” And talking of family ties, at the time of our interview there has been no homecoming for the first Croatian heavyweight champion of the world in history. Yes, the first. It is remarkable, given the history of warriors from his country, going back to the Roman Empire and even earlier. Croatia sits at the crossroads of Central Europe, Southeast Europe and the Balkans, and it has long been an area of mercenary warriors with its long coastline that features over 1,000 islands and islets in the Adriatic Sea. The “upset defeat” of Itauma, the bright young thing in the heavyweight division who was poised to become the second youngest heavyweight titleholder in history after Mike Tyson, was no shock to Hrgovic, however. He was “convinced from the moment that the fight was signed that he would win,” according to his manager, Keith
Connolly, who speaks of Hrgovic in glowing terms, yet also reveals the fighter’s reluctance at times to be in the spotlight. It remains a peculiar thing that Hrgovic’s coming of age fight, a crowning night, just happened to be against the most talented rising star in the division, with “El Animal” consigned to being the underdog almost universally, from bookmakers to pundits alike. Most of us drank the Kool-Aid on Itauma. And as the contest played out, it was a night not so dissimilar in shape and finality to the famed “Rumble In The Jungle” between George Foreman and Muhammad Ali. Comparisons have been made of the denouement in both contests as an exhausted Itauma was bested by Hrgovic in the ninth round, just as Ali undid a faded Foreman by the eighth round of their battle on the African continent. Hrgovic is thrilled when he learns it has been brought up by many observers, again in the dark, as he has not watched reports on social media or the internet. “Man, that is amazing,
that really means something to me,” says the granite-jawed fighter. Of fight week itself, Hrgovic tells me, “I took the signs which I had felt the minute the fight was signed. I knew and believed I would beat Itauma, even though many around me had concerns and doubts.” We laugh about his shirt being open all fight week, unbuttoned to his waist. “It was the first time I had abs like that, so they were going to be on show. I felt proud. I had really put the work in with Abel Sanchez in camp at altitude in Big Bear [California]. “I knew it was going to be a special night for me. I knew he was nervous at the weigh-in. The slap I gave him at the weigh-in after he pushed me was another thing which felt good.” All of it augmented Hrgovic’s belief in the game plan hatched with Sanchez: to take Itauma late into the contest, where he had never been in his professional career. I had dinner with Sanchez in Las Vegas during the Ryan Garcia-Conor
Benn fight week in early September. The ever-avuncular, ultra-calm Sanchez told me how Hrgovic had contacted him two and a half years ago, after Abel had decided to retire. He is now 77. Within four fights, returning to the sport, he was the trainer of a heavyweight player. “I had retired, and Filip persuaded me to come back,” grins Sanchez. “I had sold the gym to Jaime Munguia, and I was really ready to stop. But it has been great with Filip.” The Summit Gym, which sits in Big Bear Lake, California, was built by Sanchez himself and saw elite fighters like Gennadiy Golovkin in training. Sanchez explained: “I told [Hrgovic], ‘If I am coming out of retirement, I want you training seriously as a heavyweight,
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