Moses Itauma has the biggest test of his career this weekend when he takes on Dillian Whyte, and Roy Jones Jr has now had his say on the fight.
Itauma is just 20 years old but has already had huge backing from those who have sparred him and watched him, including Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk respectively, who have both named him as the future of the division.
He has knocked out 10 of his 12 opponents so far, including Mariusz Wach, Demsey McKean and Mike Balogun, and this weekend takes on the hugely experienced but recently rather inactive Whyte.
Speaking to The Ring Magazine, Hall of Famer Jones Jr has put his backing behind the quality of Itauma but urged his matchmakers to move with caution.
“Itauma is the truth, but you have to move him at a pace and get him there. Itauma can be thrown into the fire, but you don’t want to throw him into the inferno. Usyk is the inferno right now. You can’t just throw him into the wolves too early. Look what happened to Jared Anderson when they threw him in too fast.”
Having said that, it appears Jones favours the future top five heavyweight over ‘The Bodysnatcher.’
“The fight against Whyte will tell us a lot about Itauma. It’s a great test for him, but he definitely has all of the attributes and the things you look for in a young fighter. Itauma could soon be a top-five heavyweight.”
With Fury currently retired, and Antony Joshua, Whyte and Usyk all edging towards 40, there is likely to be space for a new star of the division to emerge and rule for the next generation.
Were he to win against Whyte, Ituama stregthens the claim that he is the man to takeover.
