Everyone is asking for crazy money but that's Queensburys fault to a extent for creating the narrative that Moses is the next big thing
I love how for months now we have had to listen to how he was going to fight basically the entire division, only for not a single one of those rumored fights to materialize, and now he wont fight at all again this year. Baffling.
Time's have changed, he wont fight every 2 weeks because from his debut he's been a TV fighter and needs TV dates, he's now a headliner and with that comes purse expectations which putting him on a small hall shows not on TV will not cover.
Lots of boxers have done their whole his careers, or near enough their whole careers, on TV. I'm not expecting him to be taken off TV. He could have been put on the Parker-Wardley show this past weekend. Frank Warren and DAZN have plenty of TV dates. Frank Warren used to have his 20 year prospects on TV fighting all the time. It's pathetic having Moses Itauma fighting 2 fights per year when he's had 12 fights and he's winning those fights in a matter of seconds or minutes. It's making things harder for the kid. Just so they can milk the casual fans with some bull**** 'pay per view' 'headliner' crap.
It's good for a boxer's mental well being to be fighting a boxer in an official fight in the ring in front of a crowd, and it's good for the media build-up. Of course, if the opponent's are too weak to test him, they'll make sure he gets good work in sparring. Everyone from Mike Tyson to Sugar Ray Robinson, Wladimir Klitschko, Lennox Lewis, Julio Cesar Chavez, Larry Holmes, Willie Pep .... they all had fights often when they were coming up, or throughout their carerrs. Some of the opponents were easy work, but it didn't stop those guys from being great. Fighting less than 3 minutes action in 1 whole year (against Balogun and a shot Whyte) is not how any of them did it. That's pathetic. It reminds me of Gerry Cooney.
So feed him to more cans where he gets 1 rnd work out? The issue here isn’t him fighting. Its finding quality opponent. They can’t find any. No one wants to fight him.
It's honestly hilarious. Itauma's never fought anyone who's chin checked him or dogged him, not even in the amateurs. At least with guys like Usyk, Loma, Ramirez, Stevenson etc the hype was justified at the begining due to their insane amateur competition. Itauma has fought no-one in his life to justify this insane hype. I'm more and more sure that a Thompson-Price moment awaits him. Declining Sanchez and avoiding punchers in general is not a good look considering all the talk.
I personally dont even mind the hype because he has blown out of the water some decent opposition, but he and his team are talking such a big game while not actually fighting any of the top competition, and I cant take them seriously For what Itauma´s resume is, given his age, I would say its excellent and he has been stepping up in competition. And who knows, maybe they will fight an actual top 10ish guy next, but I doubt it.
Itauma is 20, has only fought 26 pro rounds and obviously still has a lot to learn. He won't learn anything sitting on his thumbs.
I have a feeling that Itauma could be knocked out cold by an experienced fighter who knows how to box, he fights too rarely, and so far he's only fought with wrecks...
His problem was fighting a name this early into his career and beating him so easily. It will put off many potential opponents in the upper echeolons of the division, as they know they are sacrifical lambs and most won't want to fight him as it is a lose lose situation for thier careers. Whereas, he could have continued to fight novices and gain important experience had he not taken the step up. I suppose the flip side is that, he could get a passing of the torch fight against Usyk, where he wouldn't have had he not upped the level of competition. Either way, I hope for the sake of the division he's not inactive for much longer. Would have made sense for him to be on the Whyte vs Chisora card, even against someone like Franklin or Vianello.
It's because fighters and promoters are too scared to lose their zero's these days. One loss and it's retirement time.