Boxing

18-year Boxer with Nigerian roots knocks-out opponent in one minute

By Asuquo

Posted on October 28, 2023

18-year old Nigerian-born British boxer on Saturday, October 29, 2023 overpowered his overmatched opponent, Istvan Bernath in a fight that lasted just one minute and 53 seconds in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Born to a Nigerian father and a Slovakian mother, Moses Itauma, an 18-year-old heavyweight, needed just one minute and 53 seconds to stop Hungary’s Istvan Bernath in the pay-per-view opener on the Tyson Fury-Francis Ngannou undercard at Kingdom Arena.

Itauma dropped Bernath once and later won by technical knockout while a battered Bernath was still standing.

Referee John Latham halted their scheduled six-round bout because Bernath took too many unanswered punches.

The left-handed Itauma (6-0, 4 KOs), of Chatham, England, knocked Bernath to the canvas with a stiff jab 1:20 into their fight. Bernath (10-2, 8 KOs) fell awkwardly to the canvas, but he took his time and got off one knee by the time Latham counted to eight.

Itauma immediately pounced on him and Bernath attempted to tie him up. Latham separated them, but Itauma quickly landed a right uppercut and a right hook that wobbled Bernath.

Latham stepped in a few seconds later to prevent Bernath from taking unnecessary shots.

Bernath, 34, lost a second straight bout by knockout. Journeyman Terrell Woods (then 28-55-9) knocked him out in the fourth round of his previous appearance, which took place last December 10 in Memphis, Tennessee.