Moses Itauma Scores Brutal TKO Over Franklin

Moses Itauma kept his momentum rolling Saturday night, stopping Jermain Franklin in the fifth round with another impressive heavyweight performance at Co-op Live in Manchester. Franklin was brought in as a durable test, having previously gone the distance with both Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte, but Itauma proved too sharp, too composed, and too powerful once again.

Itauma started aggressively and looked for an early finish, but when Franklin showed his usual toughness, the young heavyweight settled down and boxed with more patience. That adjustment paid off in round five, when Itauma landed a left uppercut that badly hurt Franklin before following up and sending him face first to the canvas. The stoppage came at 1:33 of the round, giving Itauma another statement win and strengthening the belief that he is one of the most dangerous rising heavyweights in the sport.

The undercard also produced several notable results. Willy Hutchinson handed previously unbeaten Ezra Taylor his first loss, controlling the fight over 10 rounds and winning by unanimous decision with scores of 99-91 and 98-92 twice. Brad Pauls delivered one of the biggest surprises of the night, coming from behind on the cards to stop Shakiel Thompson in the ninth round and derail Thompson’s push toward a world title opportunity.

Elsewhere on the card, Liam Davies captured the vacant European featherweight title by overwhelming Francesco Grandelli and forcing a corner stoppage after six rounds. Michael Gomez Jnr also impressed, stopping Jordan Flynn in the third round in a strong performance after moving up to lightweight. Gerome Warburton scored an upset decision win over Nathan Heaney in the chief support, while Josh Holmes stayed unbeaten with a first-round stoppage of Alex Murphy.

Overall, the night belonged to Itauma, who answered questions about Franklin’s toughness with a mature and destructive showing. As the level of opposition continues to rise, so does the feeling that Itauma is moving quickly toward the biggest fights in the heavyweight division.