Moses Itauma pushed Filip Hrgovic off stage before receiving a slap to the face from his opponent at a heated final face-off at the weigh-in ahead of their heavyweight world title fight in London on Saturday. After taking to the scales - both fighters weighing in lighter than their previous respective bouts, with Itauma at 241.7lbs and Hrgovic at 236.2lbs - the boxers went face to face and were soon trading barbs. As Hrgovic then moved to the front of the stage to flex for the crowd, Itauma pushed him in the back and the Croatian stumbled forwards and off the podium, keeping his feet.
Hrgovic then got back on stage and threw a slap at his British opponent's face as security stepped in. Hrgovic told DAZN: "I just tell him what's going to happen, I'll smash him. "He pushed me first so I just give him back, you know.
He started. [The fight is] going to be tough." Asked about the extra tension between them and why he had reacted the way he did, Itauma said: "I don't know, I just lost it a little bit. But we're here now, we're here. "I had a little itch and I just had to scratch it." Itauma is aiming to become Britain's youngest heavyweight world champion and the second-youngest in history behind Mike Tyson by winning Saturday's fight for the vacant IBF heavyweight title at London's O2 Arena.
The undefeated 21-year-old has swept aside all those placed in front of him throughout his 14-fight career and stands on the brink of a historic victory that could shape the heavyweight division for a generation. Tyson dethroned Trevor Berbick to seize the WBC belt at the age of 20 four decades ago. Speaking ahead of the weigh-in about comparisons to Tyson's achievement, Itauma said: "I've always wanted to start off like Mike Tyson but [not] end up how Mike Tyson ended up.
"But now I'm in the shoes that Mike Tyson was, as in all the fame and accolades at such a young age, I'm starting to see and realise why he fell off the way he did. I just don't want to make the same mistakes he made. "I'm wrapping my head around these things and I guess that's why I'm so heavily into books because I ain't never been in this position before.
"There is such thing as too early, but I'm taking necessary precautions to handle it the way I believe I should."
Extract — continue reading at the source.
