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Moses Itauma dealt another blow as potential opponent agrees alternative fight
Rumoured Moses Itauma opponent Michael Hunter has announced his next fight - a bout at York Hall against unbeaten British heavyweight Eli Frankham on Friday, December 5.
In recent weeks Hunter’s name cropped up as a potential foe for starlet Itauma, who is slated to headline a Queensberry card on Saturday, December 13.
Instead, Hunter will travel across the pond to fight a minor name in a small hall, representing a drastic change in fortunes for a heavyweight in world title contention as recently as August.
Hunter has been inactive since the turn of the year, with multiple fight opportunities looking fairly concrete before dissipating. Ahead of Fabio Wardley’s fight with Justis Huni, it was announced that Hunter would face WBA ‘regular’ champion Kubrat Pulev, before facing the winner of Wardley-Huni, which was for the WBA interim title.
The bout with Pulev went as far as a $1.1million purse bid being won, with Hunter’s promoter, Don King, securing the rights to organise a fight, first in August, and then October.
However, amid the talk of fighting Pulev, Hunter was heavily rumoured to have agreed a deal to fight fellow American heavyweight Jarrell Miller ahead of Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez’s clash with Terence Crawford in September.
Promoter King issued a cease-and-desist to TKO, who hoped to organise the Hunter-Miller fight, stating that Hunter was contractually tied to Don King Productions. Ultimately Hunter ended up facing neither Miller or Pulev, leading to the WBA removing the American as the mandatory in the heavyweight division.
Itauma has been installed as Hunter’s replacement, although the Brit will have to wait for a bout with Pulev after the Bulgarian agreed to fight Murat Gassiev on Friday, December 12. With another rumoured opponent in David Adeleye confirmed to be fighting in Nigeria on Friday, December 19, Itauma’s dance partner for his next fight is still up in the air.
Hunter’s choice of opponent has raised a few eyebrows, with Frankham an unknown name.
Frankham’s record on BoxRec stands at 3-0 and lists his last fight as taking place in 2020, the poster states that the 32-year-old has competed in eight contests, winning five by stoppage.
The card is organised by Rich Energy, who announced the fight on their social media.
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