Fighters who have dominated the landscape for years are starting to plot their exit routes and the new breed is starting to make waves.

Moses Itauma is 21 but widely regarded as the future of the division, and teenagers such as Leo Atang and Adam Olaniyan are already being groomed to follow in his wake.

Matty Harris (10-1, 7 KOs) wants to be a part of the conversation.

Earlier this month, Harris was given the chance to impress on the undercard of Deontay Wilder’s win over Derek Chisora. He blew away Franklin Ignatius (9-2-1, 1 KO) in the second round.

The win served a s a timely reminder as to why the 6-foot-8 Harris was once regarded as such a promising prospect himself.

“That's what it's about. I want the big fights. That's what we're here for,” he told The Ring.

“A few years ago, I had that kind of hype around me. I’ve always been a big puncher but Peter [Fury, his trainer] never mentions that in the gym. He says that the power is a given so we work on everything else away from that.

“I'm here to make statements, to win titles. I don't care who it is that I've got to fight, whether it's any of them guys. I imagine we'll all cross paths at some point.”

Harris’s quick hands, agile footwork and natural power quickly got him noticed.

In 2023 he went into a fight with Kostiantyn Dovbyshschenko on the back of four consecutive first-round finishes and quickly dropped the Ukrainian warhorse. Unlike Harris’ previous opponents, Dovbyshchenko got up. Harris tired and was stopped in the fifth.

Slowly but surely, he put the pieces back together and rebuilt under Fury. The impressive win over Ignatius was the culmination of three years' hard work.

Fighters mature at different ages. Harris is 26, confident in his own abilities and ready to start moving more quickly. “I believe that that loss was the best thing that happened to me,” he said. “I've never shied away from talking about it because you can't progress without accountability anyway.

“I do think that that loss was what put me on the path to where I am now and to what I'm going to achieve in the future.

“I am grateful for it as much as it kind of sucked at the time but, even then, I don't really sit there and revel in my mistakes. I kind of just think about, 'What went wrong? What do I need to do to get better? How can we move on from this?'”

The heavyweight division is big business, but long established names such as The Ring and WBA, WBC and IBF champion Oleksandr Usyk, Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder are coming towards the end of their careers and promoters are starting to position prospects to take up the mantle.

If Harris can continue improving and stringing together wins, opportunities will arrive. When his moment does come, he will be ready.

“I've never been one to shy away from the bright lights or the big occasions. I just never have been. One thing I'd say I'm quite good at is being quite present and in the moment.

“When things are going down, I don't freeze. I don't panic. I'm quite good at just being able to be there and be focused on my job.”