Going back 25 plus years we had the 6 ft 5 adonis, Michael Grant. Grant turned pro at 22 in 1994 after a very brief run in the amateurs. By 1999 Michael looked like the next big thing, trained by Don Turner, Michael had bagged a deal with HBO network and was 31-0 with 22 knockouts.
The First time Michael was taken the distance was by 55 fight veteran Danny Wofford in fight number 9 over 8 rounds, Grant would be forced over the line several times more in the second half of his career so far, more justifiably by capable guys, Jeff Wooden, Ray Anis, Ross Purity and Lou Savarese. The first prominent name that Grant faced was Mike Dixon in his 14th outing. Mike began to prove himself as a noted puncher, and got rid of some top drawer heavyweights of the period including Corey Sanders, Alfred Cole, Jorge Gonzalez, David Izon, Obed Sullivan and Ahmad Abdin.. in 1994 Michael made 10 ring appearances and in 1996 made 8, quite impressive activity. The first sign of cracks in Michael’s game came in his 31st fight, headlining against the very dangerous Andrew Golota who had twice quit in fights that he appeared to be winning against Riddick Bowe 3 years prior..
Entering the fight Michael was 27 and had never been under any significant pressure.. in round 1 Grant was dropped and forced to climb off the floor twice to avert an imminent crisis. After maintaining some composure Michael steadily pressured Golota and stood his ground in a competitive contest. In round 10 Grant dropped Golota heavily, as the Polish heavyweight climbed to his feet, he turned away from the referee displaying his nature and a frontrunner, handing victory to the surprised Grant.
What the Golota fight showed us was that Michael had minerals.. but it also exposed some evident flaws especially early in the fight..
5 months later Michael would challenge for Lennox Lewis's unified titles (2 relevant belts) a fight where he would once again run into hot water early, displaying his lack of fundamentals at the highest level. Michael was dropped 3 times by Lewis in the opener then knocked unconscious in round 2, in an event that appeared far too big for him considering his limited time in the sport.
Toledo Ohio’s Jared Anderson appeared the 2024 heavyweight in waiting, he turned pro in 2019, aged 19 and by 2024 marked up an impressive run of 17-0 with 14 knockouts. Jared was pushed over the distance on 2 occasions against former IBF champion Charles Martin in his 15th fight and by durable Ryad Merhy in fight 17, the Martin fight being the first real fighter of note that Anderson had faced. In fight number 18 Jared would run into his first crisis, where he was dropped 3 times by the heavy handed Martin Bakole and stopped in round 5. Anderson has since only returned to the ring once to face token opposition. Anderson was averaging between 3 to 4 fights per year until 2024.
The UK’s Moses Itauma appears the current heavyweight of the hour, he turned pro at 18 and at the present time has an impressive record of 13-0 with 11 kos. Despite earning a reputation as a noted world class puncher, Moses was twice forced the 6 round distance as early as his third and fourth fights. Since bout 4, Itauma has got rid of every man he’s faced in double quick fashion, the first notable name being former world title challenger Mariusz Wach who he stopped in 2 rounds in his 10th outing. Since then he dispatched 2 durable once beaten opponents in Dempsey Mckean in 1 and Mike Balogun in 2, before his most significant step up last year when he knocked out the world ranked Dillian Whyte in a single round. As far as activity goes, in his brief 3 and a half years as a pro he boxed 7 times in 2023, 4 times in 2024 and twice last year. Moses is due to take on the durable and tested Jermaine Franklin in a few weeks, in a bout designed to gauge where he is on the large scale. So far Itauma hasn’t encountered anything even close to a crisis situation.
It’s tough between the three comparisons, Jared and Moses moved towards the top of the division in different ways, with Grant boxing far more frequently in comparison to today and against more varied and proven guys. Itauma may prove to be the real thing as his career progresses but it shows that there is indeed a fine line when it comes to the progression and correct development of a young heavyweight prospect, it’s almost a work or art and as we’ve seen in two of these instances, poor timing and bad matchmaking can signal curtains for costly and time consuming exercise. Boxing is a game where the snakes are long and the ladders are extremely short.
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