Moses Itauma Destroys Dillian Whyte in Single Round

Moses Itauma just destroyed Dillian Whyte in a single round as the 20-year-old heavyweight sensation overcame the experienced pro with ease during a Queensberry and Matchroom co-promotion on Saturday, the 16th of August in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The boxing event aired as a DAZN pay-per-view.

At 37, and with 34 fights experience before he’d even stepped foot into the ring, Whyte had a clear advantage in experience having shared the ring with Anthony Joshua, Derek Chisora, Robert Helenius, Joseph Parker, Alexander Povetkin, and Tyson Fury, among others. Though he’d always just fallen shy from becoming a legitimate world champion, he’s been involved in the global scene for years.

Itauma, by stark contrast, is 17 years younger than Whyte, has fought nowhere near the same caliber of fighter, but, regardless, gave his opponent a more brutal thrashing than he’d ever had before. Whyte had lasted at least five rounds with Povetkin, six with Fury, and seven with Joshua. But, against Itauma he didn’t even survive to hear the end of the opening round. It was over well before that.

Moses Itauma Destroys Dillian Whyte

Whyte commanded the center of the ring in the early stages of the fight, but Itauma quickly got himself into a rhythm and perfectly executed a one-two that continued to bamboozle the elder fighter. Itauma lashed a heavy shot at his body, and sent another to his skull for good measure. Bang, bang! Again and again. Whyte then started to wobble and it became clear, very early in the fight, that though he had all the experience, he had none of the power or poise that Itauma possessed and it was only a matter of time before he wobbled, got dropped, and counted out.

True enough, Itauma barely needed to enter second gear, and showed he had another level to even go to, but he already had Whyte in a vulnerable position, barely defending himself against the ropes, and looking like he was off-balance and ready to go. Itauma didn’t rush his work, but each punch he hit him with in his 1-2’s just made the knockdown an inevitability. When it happened, the referee waved it off and though Whyte protested the decision, an Itauma finish — one in emphatic fashion — was perhaps always a foregone conclusion.

Watch the highlight-reel finish right here:

“To be honest, what Ben [Davison, boxing coach] was telling me what to do, for the first two-to-three minutes, he was doing exactly what Ben was saying he was going to do,” Itauma said after the 13th win of his career was confirmed by the ring announcer.

“The fight nerves had kicked in. After, maybe the first minute, I kept seeing it happen — I can’t miss it. It’s the game-plan.”

Victory advanced Itauma’s pro boxing record to 13 wins (11 KOs). He remains unbeaten, and continues his rapid ascent as one of the sport’s brightest prospects who is perhaps on a collision course with the undisputed No.1 in the division — Oleksandr Usyk.