British heavyweight Moses Itauma will return to action on 29 August to face Filip Hrgovic at London’s O2 Arena.
Itauma claimed an impressive win over Jermaine Franklin in March to stretch his unbeaten record to 14-0 and retain the WBA International and WBO Inter-Continental titles.
That has earned the 21-year-old his first headline fight against Hrgovic, who won bronze for Croatia at the 2016 Olympics and now has a 21-1 professional record.
“This fight is the litmus test Moses is ready for and it is the one he wanted,” said promoter Frank Warren.
Hrgovic stopped Dave Allen in Doncaster last month and the 34-year-old then called for southpaw Itauma.
He and Hrgovic are first and second in the WBO rankings, respectively, and the winner at the O2 is set to be first in line for a shot at Daniel Dubois’ WBO belt.
Hrgovic’s only defeat came against Dubois in June 2024 and he has since beaten three British fighters – Joe Joyce, David Adeleye and Allen.
His bout with Itauma had been earmarked for 25 July, until compatriot Anthony Joshua arranged to face Kristian Prenga on that date.