Moses Itauma, rising heavyweight prospect at just 20, thrills with first-round knockout of Dillian Whyte

Already the most impressive heavyweight boxing prospect in more than two decades, 20-year-old Moses Itauma took a giant step forward in the direction of future superstardom on Saturday in the most difficult flight to date of his two-plus years as a professional. 

Itauma (13-0, 11 KOs), who was making a giant step up in competition against 37-year-old division stalwart Dillian Whyte (31-4, 21 KOs), needed less than a round to put away the former two-time interim titleholder inside ANB Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 

Whyte's only pro defeats had previously come against former, current or future heavyweight champions and Itauma was able to finish Whyte, who entered on a three-fight win streak, faster than countrymen and former champions Anthony Joshua (2015) and Tyson Fury (2022). 

"I would like to say thank you to 'The Bodysnatcher,' Dillian Whyte," Itauma said. "It takes two to tango, so thank you for giving me this opportunity to showcase my skills."

The jury is still out as to whether Itauma, a native of Slovakia who was raised in England, can take a punch from an elite foe or whether he has the gas tank to fight past six rounds after 11 of his 13 pro fights failed to even make it out of Round 2. Itauma looked just as dynamic offensively against Whyte as he did against lesser competition as he relied on quick feints early to open up his opponent's guard before finishing combinations to the body.

But after a quick feeling-out process, Itauma began to let loose in a big way. The quick-footed southpaw landed a short right uppercut to buckle Whyte's legs and send him into the ropes. From there, a still-patient Itauma ripped off a barrage of combinations, including a left cross that visibly hurt Whyte and a second left hand that send him to the canvas. 

"To be honest, for the first 2-3 minutes, I saw [Whyte] was doing exactly what [trainer] Ben [Davison] was telling me to do but the fighting nerves were not yet kicked in," Itauma said. "After maybe like the first minute, I was like, 'OK, cool. I keep seeing this happen and I can't miss it.' [From there,] I executed the gameplan."

Whyte made it to his feet before the count of 10 but the bout was instantly waved off at 1:59 of Round 1 after he stumbled back into the corner on wobbly legs and needed the ropes to hold him up.  

"I saw it coming," Davison said. "It's extremely hard to go rounds with [Itauma]. I've seen him in the gym break people down on the front foot. The only con is that we're still trying to get them rounds in!"

After the fight, Itauma yelled into the microphone during his post-fight interview to ask the crowd, "What's next? What's next? What's next?"

Although most of the crowd yelled back the name of undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk, Itauma showed interest but also teased at the possibility of seeking more rounds and experience first. Itauma, who turns 21 in December, has already missed the deadline for a shot at breaking Mike Tyson's heavyweight record as the youngest champion in history (20 years, 4 months, 22 days).

"Honestly, I'll fight anyone they put in front of me so you shout a couple of names out and I'm there," Itauma said. "Listen, if I'm being completely honest, Joseph Parker and [Agit] Kabayel do deserve the [Usyk] shot but I would love to take that opportunity, as well. Chuck me in with that lot.

"I'm ranked No. 1 with the WBO and interim champion now. Parker is also with that so maybe that is a good fight. The team mentioned they still want me to get some rounds out. All of these fights can happen. I'm only 20 and I have maybe 10-15 years left in this career so there is going to be a lot of this face around."

Itauma's promoter, Frank Warren of Queensberry, was understandably giddy at the possibilities moving forward.

"[Itauma] has done everything he has been asked but it's how he has done it," Warren said. "He's the most unbelievable finisher. He catches you, you are in trouble. I have to be honest, i was [surprised]. I thought it would be a bit longer than that but [Itauma] did it in style. He catches you and he doesn't get flustered, He gets space on his shots and he doesn't fall into his opponents. Every shot he throws is heavy and is a well-measured punch. He's an unbelievable boxing talent and probably the best at this stage of his career that I have ever been involved with."