Hrgovic’s own march toward championship level was going smoothly until he encountered Daniel Dubois in the 18th fight of his career.

The Croatian, who was previously undefeated, was stopped on cuts by Dubois in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and considered retirement due to the intense embarrassment he felt from the loss.

But two years, two months and four fights later, Hrgovic is now IBF world heavyweight champion following his unforgettable victory over Itauma at O2 Arena, London on Saturday night.

Given what he went through against Dubois in June 2024, Hrgovic (21-1, 16 KOs) is acutely aware of how Itauma (14-1, 12 KOs) will be feeling as the inquest begins into the first defeat of his career.

“My advice to him right now is to, of course, not give up,” Hrgovic said. “And to not lose his confidence.

“Now he needs to get a few easy fights and easy wins, to build again and to learn from these mistakes.

“You can't box like an amateur, it's a 12-round fight, man. You need to pace yourself. You need to be ready in every moment. It's a marathon, not a sprint.”

Before Saturday night, Itauma was on a 10-fight KO hot streak, with all but one of those coming within two rounds. He looked on course for another early night given how he started against Hrgovic, who was battered from pillar to post in the opening few rounds.

Itauma could not miss as he switched his attack from straight left hands downstairs to slashing right hooks to the head from his southpaw stance.

But despite appearing to be in serious trouble, Hrgovic (21-1, 16 KOs) knew that his 21-year-old opponent would not be able to maintain such a pace for the whole fight.

“He outpaced himself,” Hrgovic explained. “I saw from the first round that he was breathing hard. He was throwing too much. He was fighting like an amateur. I knew I needed to endure. I needed to stay in there.

“The first time I saw that I hurt him was at the end of round eight and I saw my chance then from the beginning of Round 9 I knew I needed to jump on him and finish him.”

Thankfully for Hrgovic, the Slovakia-born Englishman decided to keep swinging until the very end which allowed him to pounce. But the Croatian knows that a more experienced operator may not have given him that chance in the first place.

“He’s a kid,” he says. “He could have boxed for the last few rounds, used his legs, boxed, moved. He was winning all of the rounds.

“He went toe-to-toe with me in round nine and it was a stupid move from him, very stupid. It was down to inexperience, he’s an amazing fighter but he’s still young.”

Hrgovic had predicted that Itauma would lack the requisite seasoning to finish the job against a hardened professional like him, who has never been knocked out in his entire life.

But while he was right about that, Hrgovic admitted he did not realise just how good Itauma — the man tipped by many to be the division’s next dominant force — really is.

When asked if he expected the fight to unfold as it did, Hrgovic said: “No. I'm always honest and I didn't expect that.

“I thought it was going to be easier. I didn't know he's so good. He's very fast and honestly, I've never been in a ring with someone like him.

“But he's inexperienced, he still boxes like an amateur. He's quick, but he needs more power. He can be better if he learns the professional style of fighting.

“He just needs to adjust to professional boxing a little bit but he's definitely an amazing talent and I believe he'll be world champion for sure.”