Eddie Hearn Believes He Has the Man to Topple Moses Itauma — and It's Not Anthony Joshua

Itauma will have his maiden shot at a world title against Filip Hrgovic on August 29

Moses Itauma | IMAGO / PA Images

Moses Itauma is not even a world champion yet, but as the heir apparent to the heavyweight division, Eddie Hearn is already eyeing up the man he believes can pose a threat to the Brit's seemingly inevitable reign as heavyweight world champion.

The heavyweight division is currently dominated at the top level by Frank Warren's armada of heavyweight talent at Queensberry. He currently boasts two of the four reigning champions, Agit Kabayel and Daniel Dubois, but it is soon to be three, as two of his men - Itauma and Hrgovic will fight for the vacant IBF heavyweight title at the end of the month.

Moses Itauma vs Mariusz Wach | IMAGO / PA Images

Naturally then, Hearn is looking to get his foot back in the heavyweight door, as Anthony Joshua used to be his golden goose, but is looking ever more unlikely to get his hands on a belt again. It will be a tall order to match Warren's strength, especially as Itauma stands to become the second-youngest heavyweight champion of all time, behind only Mike Tyson.

Eddie Hearn's man to beat Moses Itauma

That man, Hearn believes, is the giant Australian heavyweight Teremoana Teremoana, who is about to fight Deandre Savage in his 12th professional outing. The Matchroom boss and the man himself believe he has all the ingredients to overwhelm and beat Itauma. Hearn called it 'The Fight'.

"I think that [Itauma-Teremoana] is the fight. Listen, Moses is already there, although Hrgovic is his first real test. I think that he wins and I think that he wins well, but it is a real test because he has never really fought a world-class, top 15 guy.

“He has had some solid opponents, but Hrgovic is a legit top-15, top-10 guy, but Moses is very good and I rate him highly. The thing is, you have got to have that speed of foot and Teremoana has got it, but he has also got that power and he has got that strength.

Eddie Hearn | IMAGO / AAP

“The most important things in heavyweight boxing, you have got to be able to punch, you have got to be tough, you have got to have a good chin – and he [Teremoana] has got all of them, but he has also fundamentals, a great jab, great movement.”

Teremoana echoed his promoter's sentiment and added that he is just too big - standing at 6'6" and consistently weighing over 260lbs.

“When I think of him, he’s too small," Teremoana told DAZN. "He won’t be able to match me. My attributes are better. I’m a real heavyweight, 120 kilos.”

Who is Teremoana Teremoana?

For those unaware of the towering heavyweight's pedigree, he has long been touted as a future heavyweight contender. His early amateur career was nothing to write home about, boxing consistently at the national level before turning over in 2020 and going unbeaten in his first four fights before returning to his national setup to qualify for the 2024 Olympics.

This turned out to be a wise decision for his career, making it to the quarter-finals before losing to the eventual gold medallist Bakhodir Jalolov. This Olympic run unveiled his talent on the global scale, which led to him being signed by Eddie Hearn and Matchroom.

Since re-entering the professional game under Hearn, he has collected seven consecutive first-round knockouts and emerged as a real talent - utilizing his enormous frame and the skills of a much smaller man.

A fight between him and Itauma is at least a couple of years down the line and Teremoana has expressed an interest in it when they both hold a world title - Itauma will first have to beat Hrgovic, but here's hoping.