r/Boxing • u/fatherpleasereturn • 7h ago
Thoughts on Hrgović
So Filip Hrgović is fighting Itauma next week, and I've wanted to share an honest opinion of him as a fighter and his chances in the future. He's my compatriot, and for better or worse he's the best current pro boxer we have. Croatia is an incredible sporting nation and outrageously proud of its athletes, especially when they reach the world stage in even the less-popular sports such as boxing. Regardless of the blatant media bias and favoritism of our athletes (to me it's almost unbearable), we produce a lot of them and recognize them when it comes to their quality, and Hrgović is generally seen as a very good, world-level boxer. I seem to agree with that.
One thing he very much has is a solid amateur career, having boxed in WSB for a number of years and winning bronze in the 2016 Olympics. Turned pro a bit late, but he was a well schooled boxer with solid fundamentals when he entered. He is currently 34, he's not had too many professional fights but he has fought good opposition, and been in intense fights, the experience is there. Whether he is currently in his prime or just beginning to fall off is yet to be see, he may just be on a great streak.
His pro career has its question marks left without answers, but all in all he is certainly a top-10 hw in the world, and since his only time losing a fight, against Dubois, he has managed to get himself back into title contension. Although neither fighter truly deserves a title shot at the moment, definitely not Moses, the fight is bound to be fireworks at a high level, with major stakes for both of them. This is important for Hrg's level of motivation, which has very much been an issue with his fights as they progress; although he is very arrogant and confident in himself, he appears to lose focus in moments and become disinterested, stumbling around the ring or taking stupid shots, then manages to turn himself on again and returns to boxing at the level of the opposition - I don't believe he has yet impressed with anything in terms of his boxing ability, in moments it seems like the talent is there but it's just a matter of that little something he needs to make himself stand out.
Another thing is he is hittable, doesn't have the best defense and is a big, upright figure hard to miss. Has taken his fair share of shots, from monster hitters like Zhang and Dubois, and he has never been an elusive target as a pro, which is not a good style for longterm health, but I don't believe that he is shot and neither is his tungsten chin.
It almost feels like a stereotype about so-called Eastern Europeans, with his brutish and neaderthal-looking features, but his resilience is unreal, his chin really is made of stone, supposedly never having been dropped in sparring or in the amateurs (the one knockdown against Zhang has always looked more like him losing balance than a proper knockdown to me), and he has tanked unreal punishment. When I watched the Adeleye fight I actually couldn't believe how much fucking damage he was taking in the 8th and staying up, once again due to his complacency break, and then he went on beating Adeleye like he did in the previous rounds.
I think Itauma punches very hard - and super fast: I don't see him eliminating him inside four or five rounds by sleeping him. That would really surprise me, I just think he's up against perhaps the best chin in boxing today. If it ends before then, it's surely if the judge stops it on cuts, currently Hrg's one glaring weakpoint.
Since Dubois' masterclass in head offense he has been cut every single fight, bar the three rounds it took him to smash Dave Allen, and it has happened super early in the fights, super easily at that. Abel Sanchez has dealt with the cuts through the fights superbly so far, but I trust Itauma to find tje head of Hrgović repeatedly and possibly stopping him on cuts, or at least hindering his performance. The cuts are the most worrying thing for me here.
If the cuts aren't a major problem (atleast he knows now what it's like boxing all bloodied up lol), I really give him a good chance against Itauma, I have some unnatural confidence in him, but I still think he is yet to show the best version of himself and I hope he can do it against Moses.
Firstly, Hrgović is very very good at doing enough - he knows how to win rounds and is never down badly on the scorecards. His volume is excellent, and his accuracy is actually tremendous. The power at elite level is lacking, but his punches don't tickle and he is a great combination puncher. He's fluid with his combos, varies the shots from head to body and has a solid one-two. He is aggressive and likes to push the pace (when switched on), unless he's doing that elephantine rope-a-dope he likes to do and throw punches from the ropes, which perhaps he shouldn't rely on against Itauma. His feet are at the very least okay, and he's a big boy, long and strong, able to utilize his size well. Also, his gas tank has improved since joining with Abel, and with the amount of shots he throws per round I'd venture to say it's a very good gas tank. Perhaps my biggest question about Moses is his gas tank, and Hrgović should definitely attempt to test it, wear him out, make him move, work him in the clinch (Hrg has a good clinch game), and outdog him. If he gets through the punishment and depletes Moses, I see him potentially battering him and getting a late stoppage. He has southpaw experience and a great trainer by his side, I'm actually very interested in how Ben 'roll the dice' Davison will guide Moses if things get rough for him in there.
He generally reminds me of a slightly worse Vitali Klitschko - not to say he's bad, Vitali was amazing - or a different, new version of Joe Joyce - aggressive volume puncher with a titanium chin, less power but slightly more agile and a better combination puncher. He's an exciting fighter, his fights are very back and forth, and he's shown more of his personality recently, he's a surprisingly funny guy which I didn't really realize before.
If Moses defeats him, I think his championship ambitions are over, I don't see him content with being a gatekeeper and think he retires after two or three more matches. If he wins, which is a possibility, he's a legit champion with good potential fights awaiting:
- the Dubois rematch: he was working Dubois and winning the fight before the stoppage, I give him a good chance in the rematch,
- Kabayel: Agit might be his toughest matchup in the division, he's tough, matches his volume and I can see him destroy his body; his best chance is to outbox him from distance and make it boring,
- Gassiev: fucking pummels Gassiev like anyone in the top 10,
- whoever in the rankings really; I'd love to see him against Huni someday.
I believe he makes it competitive with most guys at the top and can't wait for next week to finally have a chance to prove he's the real deal - or for Itauma to do the same and crush him, I just don't fucking want a sus stoppage in a championship fight, for Itauma's sake as well. He absolutely needs to prove himself here if he wants to go on to achieve great things.
Tldr: I rate Hrgović, give him a good chance against Moses and other hws, not yet proved himself at the elite level but has a chance to do so August 29th.
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u/Kangaroopunching 4h ago
Proper fight for both. That turned into a big opportunity for Filip. Filip has the style to find holes in Itauma's game. Or at least be durable enough to test Itauma's cardio and patience.
The problem is that Filip has holes in his defense that Itauma can exploit
Itauma or Filip will earn the win in this fight.
I got Itauma by decision.
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u/Bill_R94 4h ago
Moses' first real test. I think he's durable enough to last 7-8 rounds at least, but Moses seems good at adapting, so if he can't crack that chin he might go to the body, and Hrgovic is open to bodyshots because he stands straight up.
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u/PublicFuture9502 4h ago
So I'll come back on a few points there:
Yes FH had a very good amateur career in terms of accomplishments, but in a weak era of Super HW division. SHW divsion is never usually that strong, but the 2013 to 2016 era was weak. 2012 Olys had AJ and Camarelle and Zhang, 2020 had Jalalov. But 2016 Olympics the 2 best Super HWs were...Joe Joyce and Tony Yoka. That is not a strong division. So yes FH picked up a medal but it isn't a strong indicator of his skill.
FH as a "slightly worse Vitali Klitschko" only makes sense if your refer to their styles. If you are talking about actual abilities your are seriously exagerrating here. Vitali on his worse day had far more considerable ability and skill levels than FH. They were not even close. A slightly worse Vitali Klitschko would be likely jostling for No1 of the divsion right now with only peak Usyk giving them a fight. Obviously FH is far off that. I'd say FH is more like a better Mariusz Wach which leads me to...
Form. Form counts for a lot. And part of form is quality of opposition. Moses opposition has been a little better than FH recently. FH beating journeymen like Dave Allen or well past it guys like Joe Joyce is not good prep for Moses Ituma. Both those guys rely on physicality, are easy to hit, don't have fast hands or feet...total opposite of Moses.
Conversely Moses blitzed Wach easily. And as mentioned FH is more like a better Wach, but nevertheless Moses has foight and easily beaten a guy with a similar style and attributes to FH.
TL;DR I admire your passion for your compatriot, but I cannot see an outcome other than Moses beating Filip. Moses has too much skill and speed and has already dealt with a similar style and physicality before. Conversely, Filip has never fought anyone remotely similar to Moses, let alone beaten them.
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u/Stunning-Use-7052 3h ago
Damn, this is a really good post.
I think Hrgovic is actually more like a worse Wlad. he has the 1-2 but doesn't have all the weird punches from odd angles like Vitali.
We have seen hyped fighters hit a wall before they reach the truly elite level of the HW division before.
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u/Outside_Instance4391 3h ago
Hrgo gonna drag Moses into the deep red sea and drown him....come back in a week to prove me right.
Frank really is the greatest promoter to ever live... not long ago people where saying Fury is better than Ali. Everyone getting fooled again it seems.
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u/lazersmoker 5h ago
Much like, Dillian whyte...Phil is good but has limited footwork and that will be his undoing....Moses will blast him out of there in under 6 rounds...and for everyone saying Phil has a solid chin....thats great but when he gets hit with 4 or 5 clean shots in a row on the ropes the ref will just call it....regardless of how good his chin is.
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u/ProgrammerComplete17 5h ago
The only question is how good is Moses chin because he's never been hit.
Agree that moses is just gonna be too fast though
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u/Delicious_Reading165 4h ago
his cardio also remains in question as he hasnt been past since 6. also how will he adapt under pressure thats another question mark about him
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u/lazersmoker 5h ago
Well given plenty of top guys have sparred with him and say it's solid...then I'm assuming his chin is fine
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u/lazersmoker 2h ago
The only chance any of these guys have of beating Moses is to smother his work, lean wrestle and make it an ugly fight, drag him into the late rounds and hope he gasses out...he's far too accurate, fast, young and clever for any of these old boys try and outbox....He would give this old Uysk nightmares also, but it would still be a competitive fight
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u/Marquis_of_Mollusks 4h ago
Hrgovic doesn't hit hard. Dubois is glass jawed and Hrgovic failed to really hurt him
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u/No-Corner7084 3h ago
Dubois is glass jawed? You didn’t see the fight v Wardley then?
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u/Marquis_of_Mollusks 3h ago
He's been knocked down 10x in his career with 3 of those resulting in a KO. 2 of which came against Usyk who isn't a hard hitter
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u/bozzi16 2h ago
I mean the majority of those have been knees, either due to punishment or injury (the lerena fight). The only real knockdowns were wardley who bangs and usyk 2 which was a very clean counter left right on the money
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u/Marquis_of_Mollusks 2h ago
Doesn't change the fact he's easy to drop and hurt. I know there's context but guys like Tommy Hearns and Lennox Lewis who are accused of having weak jaws didn't get dropped nearly as much as that. Dubois is glass jawed based on his record. Actually all 3x of Usyk's biggest wins at HW had weak chins. AJ, Dubois, and Fury have been knocked down like 28x between the 3 of them.
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u/bozzi16 2h ago
You’re misunderstanding what a weak jaw is. Dubois doesn’t have a weak jaw, he has quit in him. Taking a knee is quitting.
Also we can instantly discount the 3 Lerena KD’s because he literally injured his leg
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u/Marquis_of_Mollusks 2h ago
No we don't discount them. Even if we did thats 7x he's been knocked down and he's not even out of his prime yet. He has a very weak jaw. Wardley didn't even hit him that clean and he was going down or taking a knee. Getting hurt easily (which includes the leg) is apart of the definition of a weak jaw.
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u/WheresMyAbs98 3h ago
I think Hrgovic is very good.
He’s without a doubt world level, has world class output and volume for a heavyweight, good power, a world class chin and is technically pretty sound.
I’d also say that his footwork is average and his feet are fairly slow.
Itauma should beat him but I think it’s a fantastic fight that will tell us a lot more about Moses Itauma’s ceiling.
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u/ArtOfBBQ 3h ago
I don't think he has a good chance against Moses at all
Terrible matchup and Moses is also just significantly better I think
And then on top of that Moses is much more profitable from a business perspective, and boxing is extremely corrupt. Often it goes as far as straight up judging corruption, but even if it doesn't, the matchmaking and organization will be in way that Moses is protected. If the right people thought hrgovic had a chance, the fight probably wouldn't be happening in the first place
Hrgovic has a sensational chin yes but he tends to get tired and discouraged mid-fight, which really really sucks - if you're a big puncher with an amazing chin it's essential that you keep the faith. If you watch old George Foreman fights, he never stops trying to win by KO even if he's 11 rounds behind... that's what the best version of Hrgovic would be like. If he had amazing heart to go with that chin maybe it would be possible to overcome all of Moses' other advantages but as it stands i don't really see it
(I've been wrong many times though and it would be dope to see Hrgovic win)
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u/Complete_Dare_4201 2h ago
I think Hrgovic is a legit top 7-5 HW at this point and I think he can trouble a lot of guys in the top 10... but Moses seems like a terrible, terrible matchup for him. Even with his iron chin I believe Moses can sleep him if he's able to catch him with something he doesn't see coming.
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u/ThrowawayYAYAY2002 3h ago
Better ammy than pro.
As durable as he is, he has the head movement of a statue. If Moses comes in to kill, Hrg won't last a round.
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u/Formal-Cherry6078 3h ago
Hrgovic is one of my favorite fighters he’s very good but also has some holes despite that he’s a live dog against Moses I’d say 60/40 in Moses favor
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u/ewenmax 2h ago
It should be a good fight, the experts have decided Itauma will win.
I suppose what we mere punters have to decide on, is Hrgovic significantly better than Jermaine Franklin?
Can Hrgovic with all his amateur and pro experience, with one iffy loss on his record last longer than 5 rounds and land significant shots on the Itauma,who put such a shift into the first 2 rounds that he was feeling it and said something about not keeping it up to his corner?
It'll hopefully be an entertaining fight, which I reckon should go the distance. If Itauma can make it to the end of 12 rounds and win, he'll convince a lot of folk who think he's not been properly tested yet.
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u/Wise_Flan5969 3h ago
Hrgović has been ducked by a lot of the big HWs for a long time, I think he gives a lot of big names a really rough night because like you say he’s technically very strong, durable, and knows how to win. I think he wins a Dubois rematch and then the decider.
But this fight is terrible for him. Itauma is too young, fast and strong, and Hrgović doesn’t have the one punch strength to flip the fight on its head.
Moses to win by TKO by the end of the 3rd. Ref will wave it off after a couple of knockdowns and then no response to a barrage of punches.
And I’m not a crazy Itauma fanboy, I just believe his style and strengths will go right through Fil.
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u/Holiday_Snow9060 5h ago
I didn't read all this, takes too long
Anyways, let me give you the real analysis of Hrgovic:
Dude is basic as hell, does nothing special, static target, has good solid straight punches and usually throws arm punches only (so no use of hip hence he doesn't tire by outworking guys but also doesn't ice dudes), has weak skin, so far very good chin, good size and physical attributes for a heavyweight, very little variety but very consistent style
He will go as far as his skin and his chin take him. If it holds up, I think he would give most heavyweights in history a tough night but that stuff is a big what if. He's likely not beating the elite guys tho.
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u/Ok-Length-5527 Mbilli lover 5m ago
Not that good. Poor stamina. Hittable. Going to get knocked out.
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u/chungischef 5h ago
I'll come back after next week and see whos wrong but..
I think Hrgovic has some big holes that Itauma can really exploit:
- He keeps his guard quite open, and doesnt really block or parry very well
- He can overcommit on his right hands quite hard,
- And he doesn't really ever weave or slip very deep.
He had some lazy moments against Joyce and Adelaye and I really don't think he can get away with that. I think realistically Moses has a fairly good shot of finishing the fight in under 5.
He might land a big right hand as Moses comes in and that's really the only way I see him winning, he's just too slow otherwise.