Moses Itauma appreciates Demsey McKean agreeing to fight him

Confidence is a crucial part of any top fighter’s make-up. It affects how they handle themselves around others and how they approach various situations. It also affects how others approach them. 

Moses Itauma, 10-0 (8 KOs), has carried with him a quiet air of self-assurance since his professional debut. 

The 19-year-old heavyweight prodigy fights Australia’s Demsey McKean, 22-1 (14 KOs), in Riyadh on December 21st and is approaching the step-up in opposition with his usual self-belief. 

“In my mind, I always go into a fight thinking, ‘I’m gonna win and I’m gonna win quite easily.’ It’s kind of has been that but when I turn up, he might shock me and the fight might go left,” Itauma, 10-0 (8 KOs), told Queensberry. “I’m a bit delusional until I get closer to the fight and I’m a bit more prepared for outcomes that might not be my way.”

Itauma appears to address every part of his fighting life in the same matter-of-fact way and already seems to have established a solid grasp of the way that boxing – and heavyweight boxing in particular – works.

Itauma would like to move quickly but has learned that there is a pecking order. 

The big four – Oleksandr Usyk, Tyson Fury, Daniel Dubois and Anthony Joshua – monopolize the world title scene and are likely to be tied up in their own round robin for the foreseeable future. Just behind them, a lengthy list of talented heavyweights are jostling for position, desperate to prove themselves worthy of a lucrative title shot at some point in the next 12 months.

Fighters in the next tier down are much more open to the prospect of fighting a dangerous youngster like Itauma. They know that a shock win over a talented but inexperienced fighter would give their career a significant boost. They also know that they will be well paid for taking the risk.

After blowing through the normally durable Mariusz Wach in July, McKean represents a perfectly sensible step up for Itauma. The 6ft 6in southpaw has lost only once – a 12th round stoppage to Filip Hrgovic last year – and will still retain hope of establishing himself in that second tier of heavyweights. 

Itauma is acutely aware of the reputation he has already established but has also realised that it is impossible for a young heavyweight prospect to please everybody.

“I beat Maruisz Wach and everyone was saying, ‘He’s this, he’s that. We need another step up.’ I’m fighting Demsey McKean. Everyone’s gonna say it’s a good step up. I’ll knock Dempsey McKean out and then everyone’s gonna be saying, ‘Ah, but he hasn’t boxed in [a long time].’ I’m just here doing my job. I’ve called out numerous names – domestically and internationally – and this is the one fighter that has stepped up to the plate, so I’m kind of happy about that,” he said.

“You’ve gotta put yourself in their shoes. Let’s say I was to fight Johnny Fisher or someone like that; or even someone closer [to the top] like Joseph Parker. Why would they want to fight me? They could possibly end their career by fighting a 19-year-old. They got no W’s out of it. If they win, they were supposed to do that. If they lose, it’s like, ‘Ah, I’ve lost to a 19-year-old. I can’t bring my career back.’ I kind of understand it and that’s why I’m very appreciative of Demsey McKean taking this fight.”

John Evans has contributed to a number of well-known publications and websites for over a decade. You can follow John on X @John_Evans79