Tyson Fury has slammed Queensberry Promotions for ruining Moses Itauma’s career following his dramatic ninth-round defeat to Filip Hrgovic. Fury claims pushing the 21-year-old heavyweight into a world title fight too soon cost him a potential billion-dollar future in boxing.
Itauma started fast against Hrgovic. He dropped the Croatian veteran in the second round and loaded up on every single punch. But he had no backup plan when Hrgovic refused to stay down. The young prospect blew out his gas tank, lost his shape, and was stopped in the ninth round. Fury believes the rush to smash Mike Tyson’s record as the youngest heavyweight champion wrecked Itauma’s trajectory.
Fury warned that his promoters pushed him into deep waters without proper rounds under his belt. He stated: “I suppose when you are trying to build somebody into a superstar and all of that stuff, you put him in early. They made a mistake, and it has cost them. Not only has it cost Moses the $100 million career, I believe he was a billion-dollar athlete.”
The former champion pointed to his own route to the top as the blueprint. Fury accumulated 24 professional wins before challenging for world honors. He added: “I was 27 years old when I fought Wladimir Klitschko; I was a 10-1 underdog [but] I was ready. If I’d have fought him at 21, I’d have got knocked out, too.”
Sparring 12 rounds in a quiet gym is nothing like surviving championship pressure. Itauma lacked a steady jab to conserve energy and recover mid-fight.
Fury noted the massive jump in class, saying: “I just think that knocking out a low-level man is different to knocking out a world-class man; different power, toughness, everything,”
Still, Itauma can rebuild just like Daniel Dubois did after stopping against Joe Joyce and Oleksandr Usyk. Frank Warren lowered the heat, matched Dubois smartly, and brought him back to title contention. Queensberry must now fix Itauma’s technical flaws instead of just serving up quick knockout victims.
Fury offered clear advice for the comeback: “It’s about getting the balance right. Get him in with somebody who is durable, not that dangerous, who can take punishment and give him the rounds. He needs to get used to getting the rounds in.”
If Itauma learns to pace himself, his career is far from over.
