Promoter Eddie Hearn states that he sees it as zero gain for Anthony Joshua in fighting the 20-year-old Moses Itauma. He feels it’s a lose-lose situation, anyway you look at it. Itauma (13-0, 11 KOs) is too young and inexperienced for the former two-division heavyweight champion Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) to receive any credit for beating him.
A Gainless Proposition
On the other hand, if Joshua, 35, is beaten by Itauma, it would mean his career is “over” because he’s lost to a guy that hasn’t beaten anyone notable during his two-year pro or his entire amateur career.
Itauma is being rushed to the top without fighting any of the good contenders. Fans are making a big deal about his recent first-round knockout victory over the faded British journeyman Dillian Whyte, but he wasn’t facing a quality top-tier heavyweight.
The Young Lion’s Risks
- Joseph Parker
- Fabio Wardley
- Daniel Dubois
- Richard Torrez Jr.
- Lenier Pero
- Bakhodir Jalolov
- Martin Bakole
Itauma could lose to one or more of those fighters, and the hype would end abruptly about him being the next King of the division. At the very least, those heavyweights would age Itauma, wear him down, and leave him a less capable fighter than the one that rolled off the assembly line in 2023.
Weighing the Gain
“I don’t really look at the Moses fight and think that’s a fight for AJ,” promoter Eddie Hearn told Sky Sports about a fight between Anthony Joshua and Moses Itauma. “There are many reasons for that. One, what do you gain out of it?”
Joshua doesn’t come out ahead beating Itauma because he’s so inexperienced. Moses has essentially fought 13 tomato cans as a pro, and there’s a ton of artificial hype created based on those wins. The fans aren’t even waiting to see him in with a real heavyweight before they anoint him as the new King of the division.
There will be a lot of sour fans if Itauma is exposed when he gets in with a good fighter for the first time. It’ll teach fans a lesson not to buy into fake hype and be tricked by fool’s gold.
Itauma’s Flaws
Itauma lacks the amateur background for people to have an accurate gauge of whether he’s good or not. He didn’t fight the cream of the crop from Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Cuba, and the United States when he was an amateur. The one decent fighter he fought, Stylianos Roulias of Greece, had him on the run all night, acting like he was being chased by an angry junkyard dog in their fight on November 23, 2022.
Roulias showed how to give Itauma problems by attacking him nonstop, landing hard, meaningful punches, and making him feel the pain. What that fight showed is that Itauma doesn’t like to get hit, and will do anything to avoid tasting leather.
The Zero-Sum Game
“Moses is a very good fighter. If you win, you’ve beaten up a 20-year-old. If you lose, you’ve lost to a 20-year-old and your career’s over. It’s a dangerous fight. I rate Moses very highly,” said Hearn.
Joshua’s career would be seen as “over” by fans if he were to be blown out by the inexperienced Itauma. Losing to Daniel Dubois by a fifth-round knockout last September is already a signal to fans that AJ’s career is done. But if Itauma were to do something similar or worse, it would destroy Joshua’s credibility and marketability with fans.
Joshua’s popularity remains high, and he can make big money in fights against Jake Paul and Tyson Fury. If that’s his angle, the purses he would get fighting Paul and Fury would be extraordinary. Fighting Itauma, the money wouldn’t be the same because he hasn’t been around long enough to build a worldwide fanbase.
Fighting in the Trenches
“I think that Moses has a lot of work to do. He’s an extraordinary talent, but we have no idea if he can tick the boxes that are required to be a true great and a true champion in the division,” Hearn said. “What’s his chin like? What’s it like when it gets really tough in the trenches?” said Hearn.
Eddie brings up some good points. We don’t know how well Itauma will perform against quality heavyweights that are throwing back at him, forcing him into a grueling fight, and applying pressure. Dillian Whyte, 37, looked terrified, not throwing any meaningful punches in his defense before being knocked out in one round by Itauma in their headliner on August 16, 2025.
Other than Whyte, Itauma has fought no one notable. Although Moses is now ranked #1 by the WBA and WBO, his opposition has been of marginal quality all the way through his 13-fight professional career.
Examining the Record
- Dillian Whyte: 37
- Mike Balogun: 41
- Demsey McKean
- Mariusz Wach: 45
- Ilja Mezencev
- Dan Garber: 40