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Undercard Results for Moses Itauma vs Filip Hrgovic: Noakes vs Berinchyk & More

All the undercard action from the O2 Arena as Moses Itauma and Filip Hrgovic get ready to fight for a heavyweight world title.
James Hicken|
Denys Berinchyk
Denys Berinchyk | IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Moses Itauma and Filip Hrgovic met at the O2 Arena to fight for the vacant IBF heavyweight title as both men chase history.

Itauma could have become the second-youngest heavyweight champion in history and the youngest British world champion in history, but Hrgovic pulled off an incredible comeback to win the title as Itauma faced exhaustion.

Filip Hrgovic
Filip Hrgovic | IMAGO / Action Plus

With the fights behind us, here is the undercard action to cover, so here is a breakdown of how the preliminary action played out.

Guido Vianello vs. Moses Jolly (Draw)

The undercard kicked off with some heavyweight action to get the blood flowing. Undefeated Welsh prospect Moses Jolly took a step up in opposition by challenging former Olympian and prospect in his own right, Guido Vianello, who is coming off a mixed run of form, having only won two of his last four, suffering defeat at the hands of Efe Ajagba and, most recently, Richard Torres Jr.

It was obvious from the first bell that both men wanted a statement win on the big stage. Jolly, the naturally bigger man, worked well to the body early and Vianello landed some more eye-catching shots.

The intentions manifested themselves physically in the second round as both men were already bloodied and exchanging messy but potentially fight-ending combinations.

Jolly grew in confidence after landing two hellacious overhand rights that Vianello ate well amongst the holding and wrestling - a blown kiss to the crowd and bopping to the beat in his corner at the end of the round, demonstrated his self-assurance.

Early investment in the body paid off for the Welshman as Vianello was left gasping for air by the middle of the fourth – but was finding a home for counter shots and smart inside work to keep him in the fight

Vianello found a pocket of success in the sixth as Jolly’s work rate dropped off to solitary jabs and the Italian had success on the counter as both men got sloppier and more exhausted

As the final round began, it was too close to call and it didn’t look like a finish was going to come, although they did try. The referee scored the fight 76-76 a draw which felt harsh on Jolly who dominated the first half of the fight.

Constantin Ursu vs. Ben Vaughan (Ursu Rd 8 TKO)

Up next was Constantin Ursu, making the first defense of his recently acquired British welterweight title, beating Owen Cooper to be crowned champion. He took on Ben Vaughan, who went back to winning ways in his last fight after dropping a points decision against Bobby Dalton in pursuit of the English welterweight title.

The opening two stanzas were much more Vaughan than Ursu as the challenger came to work and rough up the champion Ursu, who was trying to find his range and a home for a rear uppercut to the head and body, but was smothered.

Ursu’s jab was sharp, bloodying Vaughan’s nose, and his defense took most of the sting out of Vaughans shots. Ursu was technically the better boxer but was getting caught with silly shots.

Vaughan’s game plan was to take Ursu’s legs from underneath him, thumping in body shots - which seemed to be working.

Ursu began landing with more consistency in the fifth and opened up a nasty cut above the left eye of the Englishman, which poured into his eye, buoying the champion, who began landing at will at the end of the round.

The sixth was a bloodbath as Ursu donned a cut of his own on the right eye. Neither man was deterred and they continued exchanging, with Ursu landing the more venomous shots.

Both fighters, covered in each other’s blood, rise for the eighth round, but the referee and doctor step in, deeming Vaughan’s cut a fight-ending one.

Ursu emerges as the winner, but credit to Vaughan, who gave him a serious run. Questions around Ursu’s fast and loose defense will surely be raised, but for now he remains the British and Commonwealth welterweight champion.

Nelson Hysa vs. Thomas Narmo (Hysa 1st Rd KO)

More heavyweight business beckoned as the undefeated Albanian Nelson Hysa faced off against ‘The Last Viking’, Thomas Harmo, who also boasted an undefeated record of 14 fights and 14 knockouts.

The two lumbering heavyweight giants made a slow start, exchanging pawing jabs, and Harmo lookied more vulnerable exiting range with his chin high, Hysa let out a wry grin, knowing he has his man.

The second round spelled the end. In less time than it took the fighters to walk out, the Albanian heavy hitter found the target with an overhand right that toppled ‘The Last Viking’, who made it to his feet but was not home and the referee rightly called the fight off, as it would have only led to disaster.

Hysa extends his unbeaten record to 25 fights and hangs on to his WBO Global title.

Sam Noakes vs. Denys Berinchyk (Noakes UD win)

Chief support for the evening could have been for a world title had the former champion, Denys Berinchyk, not been knocked out by Keyshawn Davis in his last fight, forfeiting his WBO lightweight title.

Sam Noakes made his return to the big stage after going to war with Abdullah Mason and coming up short. The promising young Brit collected a low-key win at York Hall in  May, stopping his opponent inside two rounds.

Berinchyk was on his bike early, not looking to engage - ducking and diving away from most of what was coming his way from Noakes and throwing out his well-educated jab.

Noakes had bad intentions in every shot but struggled to find the target with anything clean as the Ukrainian took advantage of the large ring, floating around and countering when Noakes got too close.

Berinchyk landed a couple of stinging left hands from the southpaw stance in the fourth and Noakes continued to try to drag him into a war, getting close and digging to the body where he could – he needed to find a way to slow the spring-loaded legs of his opponent.

The fifth saw more success for Noakes, who managed to corner Berinchyk a couple of times, pushing him into position with sharp jabs and in twos and threes to the head and body. It wasn’t one-way traffic, but the advancing Englishman seemed undeterred by what was coming back.

Noakes began to make the ring look smaller and smaller for the former Olympic silver medallist, forcing him into an exchange he perhaps wanted to avoid, and as his face continued to redden, the fight was slipping away.

The fast hands of Berinchyk gave Noakes something to think about as he found himself having to take at least one to give one. The Ukrainian, however, looked troubled by the size and power of Noakes as he intelligently dropped his work down to the body.

It was close heading into the final round, but you had to give Noakes the advantage, having outlanded Berinchyk for the majority of the fight, but the former champion found some joy in staying a bit closer and firing off uppercuts and lead hooks.

Noakes was given the win by all three judges and surely lines himself up for another world title shot soon.

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James Hicken
JAMES HICKEN

James started his journalism career in 2024 and has written about a variety of sports, including Boxing, MMA, tennis and Formula 1, but his expertise is in boxing. As a former boxer, he has been published with Boxing News and the Independent, where he worked as a boxing writer - covering breaking news, analysis, interviewing notable figures such as Amir Khan and reporting from ringside. James was born in Birmingham in the UK before a brief stint of his childhood in New Jersey, and then returned to the UK as a teenager to finish his education and gain a Bachelor's degree from Newcastle University. When he isn’t writing, James enjoys a round of golf with his friends or lacing up his gloves and trying to emulate the fighters he loves watching, like Vasiliy Lomachenko and David Benavidez.