Prince Naseem Hamed makes staggering Moses Itauma claim involving Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua
Moses Itauma will step into the ring on Saturday evening, seeking to make history by capturing the IBF heavyweight title at the age of just 21 years old by defeating Filip Hrgovic.
Should he maintain his undefeated record with a win over the Croatian, he will become the youngest British and second-youngest fighter in boxing history to get his hands on the heavyweight crown.
Itauma would become the third Brit in the last 11 years to have the honour of holding the title, after Tyson Fury held the belt from November 28 until December 8 in 2025, while Anthony Joshua held it on two occasions: first between April 9, 2016 and June 1, 2019, with the second period being December 7, 2019 and September 25, 2021.
Fury and Joshua have signed contracts to square off later this year, but there has been no confirmation of a date or venue for the fight, as the pair aim to claim the honorary title, at least in the eyes of many fans, of being the greatest British heavyweight boxer the sport has ever seen.
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However, Prince Naseem Hamed believes that Itauma has the chance to surpass both Joshua and Fury by becoming the "best British fighter that's ever lived".
The former multiple Featherweight title holder spoke exclusively to SPORTbible ahead of Itauma’s clash with Hrgovic.
Q: How do you feel about the fight this weekend?
PNH: It's going to be a great fight. I just think that Moses is on another level. I personally can't see the fight going past three rounds.
Q: You are now doing some commentary; what do you enjoy about doing that kind of work? Is it the next best thing to being in the ring?
PNH: Who said I enjoyed it? - No, I don't mind it. I very rarely come out, so when they see us, it's good. But I'm happy to do it.
We're going to, God willing, be witnessing something that we're going to be seeing often on our screens: Moses achieving everything, God willing. I just see him as the future of boxing.
Q: Yeah, that's high praise. Who would you say is your favourite fighter to watch currently?
PNH: He's very much up there. Yeah, obviously, I want to see him in fights where they can match up to be amazing fights, and obviously that's yet to happen, and it's still early in his career, but he's got a chance of winning the world title, and I think he does that easily.
Q: In terms of the current state of boxing, is there a lack of excitement in some of the matchups and fights?
PNH: Yeah, I think that there could be loads more entertainment in boxing. I would love to see fighters bring something exactly like me. Nobody's ever going to be like that, but at least bring so much drama, so much entertainment. I would love to see that. I think we've got that lacking in boxing, but then again, you know, not everybody can be that kind of fighter and have all that flair and confidence and everything else to go with their ability.
Q: How close do you think Moses Itauma is to kind of being in the mix with, say, Fury and Joshua? Is he right there for you?
PNH: He's beyond that. You're talking about guys that are has-beens. Finished.
The only fight that they want is between themselves, and that's because we didn't see it five years ago, and that's taking nothing away from them. They've been amazing for British boxing, and they were amazing champions, amazing guys.
I get on with both of them. I've got a lot of love and respect for them, but nobody should ever mention them at the same time as mentioning Moses Itauma. Moses is on another level. He's on his own man. He's a great fighter. He's a future Hall of Famer in my eyes. He's going be super great, God willing, and AJ or Tyson Fury would not and will not want to fight him because of what he would do to them.
They don't even want to spar with him, and I've even heard Tyson Fury, when his name's been mentioned, he's like, ‘Drop me out and forget about that’. He doesn't. They don't. Nobody wants a part of him because of the speed he has for a heavyweight.
Q: Moses Itauma is vying to be the youngest British world champion since yourself in 1995, which is a big achievement. What do you remember from that special night, and, was that a real career highlight?
PNH: That was an amazing night. Cardi Farms Park sellout; just that whole build-up for that fight was good. But the night of the fight, I just remember the crowd being so hostile. You know, throwing stuff and spitting at us, coming out and shouting Hamed, Hamed, who that is Hamed, and I loved that because I just thought I'm going to let you know who I am.
I went over there, ripped up the script, smashed him up in a fashion, took him out in rounds that I was surprised that he got to. That fight could have been over in the fifth round, but Steve Robinson was a good fighter. I take nothing away from him. My style just made him look ordinary.
I think Moses, at the age of 21, is another exceptional talent. Something for all of us to really look forward to.
I believe it's better to win a world title at 21 years old than to win the Ballon d'Or at football at such an early age.
Q: Why is that?
PNH: We say in Sheffield, kicking a bag of wind about is playing football.
We're boxing. It's a whole different sport. You've not got all of the guys defending you and behind you, and that you can just pass the ball to. Boxing's the loneliest sport in the world, but that's what I loved. You know, when you're in that ring, it doesn't get any lonelier than that, especially if the world's watching you, and you've got to produce the goods.
I was happy enough to be able to win a world title and defend it 15 times in a row. I enjoyed just being a great champion, and I think Moses is going to do the same and do even better. I really feel that he can be better and do better than anybody in this country who's ever lived in British boxing.
He’s got a chance in my eyes to be the best British fighter that's ever lived.
Itauma and Hrgovic will square off for the IBF heavyweight title on Saturday, August 29 at the O2 Arena in London at 10 pm BST.
You can watch Moses Itauma vs. Filip Hrgovic exclusively live on DAZN PPV and Ultimate Tier. The countdown is on for what will be a historic night of boxing.
Topics: Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua, Boxing
Brendan McGilligan