Moses Itauma vs Mike Balogun Predictions: The future of the heavyweight division is here

Heavyweight prospect Moses Itauma aims to extend his unbeaten run this Saturday, May 24 as he takes on Mike Balogun. The bout takes place at the OVO Hydro is Glasgow on the undercard of Josh Taylor’s homecoming fight against Ekow Essuman. The event will be shown live on DAZN.

Here are my Moses Itauma vs Mike Balogun predictions ahead of this heavyweight dust-up.

Moses Itauma vs Mike Balogun Odds

If you want an insight into how well-regarded Itauma is, view his 1/250 price for a win on Saturday night. Balogun is out at 16/1, the sort of odds you usually get on a draw. If you did fancy the stalemate, 

Moses Itauma vs Mike Balogun Fight Preview

Boxing fans, pundits, journalists and insiders alike share a tendency to get over-excited when we see something we like. It is a cynical business, but one where even the most shattered of teeth always find reasons to smile.

Nothing brings out that graveyard grin in even the most grizzled fight game lifers like a promising heavyweight puncher. The modern frame of reference is Mike Tyson, carving up the division like a hot knife through butter in the 1980s. But older men will conjure Dempsey, Louis and Liston. This might be the sweet science, but nothing raises the collective pulse like some blunt force trauma.

Tyson’s pomp is the most commonly-conjured epoch when it comes to Itauma. His desire to become the youngest heavyweight champion ever, by beating ‘Iron’ Mike’s record no less, might have run out of time (the Balogun fight takes place two days past Tyson’s record). But the fact it was even talked about as a possibility shows what this puncher is packing.

The buzz is clear to see and easy to package. Itauma is a marketing man’s dream. The highlight-reel knockouts speak for themselves. He has youth on his side. Itauma is confident without being antagonistic. British fight fans seem drawn to boxers who are able to stay humble. Even outliers like Prince Naseem Hamed had to endure audience distaste to reach their pedestal, as Ben Whittaker is finding out these days.

The level of competition has increased steadily. The usual parade of novices and journeymen have been dealt with, as is customary. Kostiantyn Dovbyshchenko and Kevin Espindola extended him six rounds in back-to-back fights in 2023. The former has never been stopped, having gone the distance with solid names like Hughie Fury, Jeamie TKV and Tom Schwarz. The latter had mixed with Solomon Dacres and Frazer Clarke.

Every other pro fight for Itauma before or since has ended with a knockout. Those early learning fights have stood him in good stead as the quality of opposition has increased. Former world title challenger Mariusz Wach might not be what he once was, but it was still stunning to see a then-19-year-old take him out in two sessions considering Clarke and Dillian Whyte had gone 10 rounds with him in recent years.

Demsey McKean followed, who was coming off a hard-fought, last-round knockout loss to the world-ranked Filip Hrgovic. What took the Croatian 12 rounds could not even occupy Itauma for a full three minutes. The southpaw crushed his Aussie opponent in three seconds shy of two minutes. 

If his first nine fights had industry folk whispering about one for the future, the Wach and McKean fights back-to-back caused fans to anoint a future world champion. 

It is easy to get carried away in these circumstances. Johnny Fisher was knocking out all and sundry until he ran into Dave Allen’s fist last weekend. David Adeleye was talked up as a breakout star until he was clobbered against Fabio Wardley. Meanwhile, the American boxing landscape is littered with fighters who were dubbed the “next” somebody before figuring out how to be themselves.

But Itauma and the operation surrounding him seem to have their feet on the ground. After back-to-back crushings of fringe world names, the temptation must have been there for Queensberry to push him further. Particularly as Itauma is in the top-three of both the WBO and WBA, as well as seventh with the WBC. 

But the kid is 20 and, with the undisputed heavyweight title situation tied up for a while with Oleksandr Usyk taking on Daniel Dubois, and Derek Chisora of all people possibly waiting in the wings, there is no sense in rushing. The noise out of Queensberry is that they want to get Itauma out often this year, continuing to move him up through the levels.

Balogun is not a name as well-known as Wach or McKean to wider audiences, but he carries some traits that make him right for this test. The former NFL linebacker has knocked out regional opposition at a good clip, finishing 16 of his 21 victims.

The kicker comes when your eye is drawn to the one and only recognisable name on Balogun’s CV. Murat Gassiev, the former unified cruiserweight champion who lost an undisputed title unification with Usyk back in 2018, starched Balogun in two rounds. 

For all his achievements at the weight below, Gassiev is an average heavy at best, having lost to an Otto Wallin who was just put in his place by the division’s answer to Methuselah, Derek Chisora. The fact he was able to destroy Balogun so effortlessly is a worry. Particularly considering the fact that Itauma has often trounced fighters who other top heavyweights failed to stop.

Itauma cannot afford to overlook Balogun. Those glitzy nights and dizzy comparisons to the greats all evaporate if he fluffs his lines here. But the 20-year-old carries all the hallmarks of a fighter born to do this.

Moses Itauma vs Mike Balogun Full Card

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Moses Itauma vs Mike Balogun Prediction

My prediction? Pain. Okay so Itauma is not quite this generation’s answer to Clubber Lang yet, but I could not resist the apt verbiage of Mr T’s second greatest role.

Put simply, I think Itauma walks through Balogun without too much trouble. He has beaten better men without so much as a scratch. The time will come when Itauma is taken out of his comfort zone. But it’s not today. Itauma in rounds 1-3 at 1/3.

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