Derek Chisora anticipates a “hard fight” between Moses Itauma and Filip Hrgovic, but believes one man has the ability to “dig deep” and emerge victorious.

The pair will square off at London’s O2 Arena on August 29, with Itauma headlining his third Queensberry card as he looks to join the world scene.

Already, the 21-year-old is ranked No.1 with the WBO and WBA, while the IBF have ordered a vacant title fight between him and seasoned contender Frank Sanchez.

Should he come through Hrgovic, then perhaps Itauma will land the Sanchez opportunity, with his team potentially negotiating a deal behind the scenes.

Until then, though, the heavyweight prodigy must prove himself against a consensus top 10 contender, taking a sizable step-up following his fifth-round finish over Jermaine Franklin in March.

Hrgovic, after all, is no slouch, having lost only to Daniel Dubois after being stopped on cuts in round eight of their June 2024 encounter.

Since then, the Croatian has leaked blood in each of his victories over Joe Joyce, David Adeleye and Dave Allen, wearing varying degrees of cuts around his eyes.

And it is partly for this reason, in fact, that heavyweight veteran Chisora has backed Itauma in an interview with Seconds Out.

“It’s going to be a hard fight, but Moses is going to dig deep and he’s going to win. We know how Hrgovic gets cut, and how he sometimes feels sorry for himself when he gets hit.

“But I believe Moses is going to come through that fight. He’s a young lion.”

Chisora went on to consider a potential fight between Itauma and Dubois, the current WBO champion, expecting these two to be leading the next generation of heavyweights.