Moses Itauma cemented his place as the future king of the heavyweight division.
Itauma, 20, blew away former WBC heavyweight title challenger Dillian Whyte inside two minutes of the opening round in the DAZN pay-per-view main event Saturday evening from the ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
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Itauma’s speed advantage — with both hands and feet — was visible straight away, as Whyte was made to miss with his jab in the opening stages of Round 1 and was countered with sharp, straight punches from Itauma.
Itauma (13-0, 11 KOs) found a home for his southpaw backhand to Whyte’s body early. A left hand on the top of Whyte’s head had him hurt at the halfway point of the round. Itauma followed up with a right hook, which saw Whyte (31-4, 21 KOs) stagger into a corner of the ring. Combinations rained in from the heir apparent immediately after. Whyte managed to stay up for around 15 seconds until a left-hand, right-hook combination forced him onto the canvas.
Whyte attempted to get to his feet but was deemed to be in no fit state to continue by referee Mikael Hook.
Saudi Arabian boxing financier Turki Alalshikh has stated in recent weeks that he would like to see Itauma challenge undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk next.
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“If I’m being completely honest, Joseph Parker and [Agit] Kabayel do deserve the shot [at Usyk more than me],” Itauma said. “But I’d love to take that opportunity as well. Chuck me in there with them lot.”
(Bruno Rouby/Yahoo Sports illustration)
Itauma is the WBO’s No. 1-ranked contender at heavyweight, with New Zealand’s Parker the interim champion. Usyk has been ordered to defend his undisputed titles against Parker next, but if Usyk doesn’t face Parker, it is likely that Parker is upgraded to full champion and ordered to face Itauma.
In the night’s co-feature, Nick Ball retained his WBA featherweight title with a unanimous decision (115-113, 117-110, 118-110) victory over Sam Goodman.
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By doing so, Ball protects Britain’s 38-year-old record of having a reigning male world champion.
Despite a pair of laughably wide scorecards, the fight was nip-and-tuck for much of the 12 rounds, with a stronger display from Ball (23-0-1, 13 KOs) in the championship frames edging him over the finish line. Goodman (20-1, 8 KOs) started very well, using his jab and quick feet to unsettle Ball and make him miss with his attacks.
Ball struggled to get into a rhythm in the first 4 rounds because of Goodman’s sharp footwork. The Australian also did a good job of targeting Ball’s body, particularly with the left hook. Ball, however, made adjustments in the second half of the fight — including punching in combinations and attacking in more than one phase — to outwork Goodman and make a successful third defense of his crown.
Filip Hrgovic (19-1, 14 KOs) and David Adeleye (14-2, 13 KOs) gave fight fans a Round of the Year contender in Round 8, which saw Adeleye taste the canvas early in the stanza but rock Hrgovic multiple times after getting up. Hrgovic went on to win a wide unanimous decision (98-91, 99-90, 99-90) to move closer to a shot at a world heavyweight title.
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Elsewhere on the card, ace Japanese prospect Hayato Tsutsumi (8-0, 5 KOs) blew away Qais Ashfaq (13-4-1, 5 KOs) in three rounds after three knockdowns and former WBA featherweight champion Raymond Ford (18-1-1, 8 KOs) defeated Abraham Nova (24-4-1, 17 KOs) by unanimous decision (96-94, 97-93, 97-93).
Main Card results
Heavyweight: Moses Itauma def. Dillian Whyte via first-round TKO | Watch video
WBA featherweight title: Nick Ball def. Sam Goodman via unanimous decision (117-111, 118-110, 115-113)
Super featherweight: Hayato Tsutsumi def. Qais Ashfaq via third-round TKO | Watch video
Heavyweight: Filip Hrgovic def. David Adeleye via unanimous decision (98-91, 99-90, 99-90)
Prelims results
Super featherweight: Raymond Ford def. Albert Bell via unanimous decision (96-94, 97-93, 97-93)
Lightweight: Mohammed Alakel def. Yumnam Santosh Singh via 1st-round KO | Watch video
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