‘Big fight’ – Moses Itauma’s exact date and location for boxing return disclosed by Frank Warren

Moses Itauma is set to return to the ring at the back end of 2025.

That is according to the Chatham southpaw’s promoter, Frank Warren, who disclosed that Itauma’s next fight will fall on December 13 in Manchester.

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Warren stopped short of revealing an exact opponent, as nothing has been agreed upon as of yet.

However, he did tell BoxNation that it would be a ‘big fight’ against a ‘top 10 heavyweight’.

Itauma’s manager and Warren’s son, Francis, recently named Filip Hrgovic as a preferred next opponent for his client.

While Warren, who also represents Hrgovic, is open to making that fight, there are reservations over whether a deep cut the Croatian suffered in his last outing against David Adeleye would be healed by December.

“If his cut was okay, I would do it. I haven’t [had an update on the cut]. I’m just catching up on all that now,” said Warren.

How good is Moses Itauma?

Itauma has struggled to bank rounds during his fledgling professional career.

Of his 13 wins, 11 of them have come inside the distance, with his last 9 opponents unable to extend him beyond two frames.

His last dance partner, Dillian Whyte, was expected to be his toughest test to date.

However, it took the precocious 20-year-old just 119 seconds to dispatch ‘The Bodysnatcher’ three weeks ago.

The explosive victory led to calls from Saudi powerbroker Turki Alalshikh for Itauma to face undisputed heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk next.

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Itauma insists he is more than happy to take up the challenge, although his handlers believe he needs to gain more experience first.

The plan is for Itauma to test himself against the divisional elite before jumping in at the deep end with Usyk sometime next year.

Itauma is currently ranked No.1 by the WBA and WBO, while he also occupies the No.6 and No.11 positions with the IBF and WBC, respectively.

While it is easy to get carried away with the early signs of brilliance exhibited by Itauma, the consensus view among the sports’ preeminent voices is that patience is required for the youngster to develop properly.

Former undisputed heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis, for one, believes Itauma should skip the Usyk fight altogether.

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“It’s way too soon,” Lewis told Sky Sports. “It’s better to wait until he retires.

“He [Usyk]’s not going to stay around too long, and then take your shot.

“There’s no use doing it now. Right now you’re learning. You’re learning everything, and you have to wait for the right time.

“You can never be rushed. If you’re rushed, you’re going to do a bad result for your career, so it’s better to take your time and take it when it’s ready, when you’re ready.”