Itauma's fifth-round knockout of Jermaine Franklin last weekend has made him the talk of the boxing world but Hrgovic has yet to be convinced that the 21-year-old has what it takes to reach the top.

On May 16, Hrgovic (19-1, 14 KOs) will fight the ever popular Dave Allen (25-8-2, 20 KOs) at Doncaster’s Eco Power Stadium. The fight is the first of his new multi-fight contract with Queensberry.

If he comes through, Itauma (14-0, 12 KOs) is in line to be the second.

"I'm not afraid of anyone. I fought a lot of southpaws in my career and I'll fight with him, no problem. I'm not buying that hype," Hrgovic told The Ring.

"He still didn't receive one punch in his career. He didn't face any guys who fought back or who gave him hard rounds. It was just a walk in the park or him."

"He's fast, he's good, but we'll see how he'll be when he receives some punishment."

Hrgovic knows what it is like to carry a weight of expectation.

A star amateur, the 33-year-old Croatian turned professional after winning a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games. He was widely regarded as an exceptional prospect and the contender most likely to develop into a genuine threat to the likes of Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder.

Heavyweight careers rarely run smoothly.

Back in 2022 he had to pick himself up from an early knockdown, bite down on his mouthpiece and grind out a gruelling 12-round victory over China's Zhilei Zhang.

Two years later, he was cut, hurt and suffered an eighth-round stoppage defeat by Daniel Dubois in a June 2024 fight for the interim IBF world title.

Hrgovic has evolved and rediscovered his form. Victories over Joe Joyce and most recently David Adeleye have seen him climb to No. 4 in The Ring standings while holding top-10 rankings with all four major sanctioning bodies.

Hrgovic respects Itauma's skills but wants to be the first to test whether he has the impossible-to-teach qualities that every top heavyweight must display at some point.

"When you lose, when you go down, when you get dropped, when you receive punishment, it's different. It builds you in a different way," he said.

"It builds your mentality and character so I think he's still not mature yet. He [Itauma] needs time, but the thing is that some things you're born with. You're a warrior or you're not a warrior, you have or don't have a chin. You'll find out when it happens.

"I definitely think I can give him a hard fight. I've proved that I can receive a lot of punches, I have a great chin and am durable. I throw a lot of punches and definitely can give him a hard fight but believe I can beat him."