Tyson Fury has backed Moses Itauma to "wreck" Oleksandr Usyk and the rest of the world's top heavyweights after the rising star's latest statement performance.
Itauma continued his ruthless ascent through the heavyweight ranks on Saturday night as he blasted past Dillian Whyte inside one round in Saudi Arabia.
The highly-rated 20-year-old has teased the potential to become the next face of the heavyweight division, with former world champion Fury tipping him to dominate for years to come.
"I keep getting asked about young Moses Itauma fighting Oleksandr Usyk and fighting all the other big names," Fury said on his Instagram story.
"My opinion is not someone who doesn't know boxing. My opinion is someone who has been there and won every single belt. Won everything there is to win in boxing and done very well. Boxing is a young man's game, like I told Wladimir Klitschko when he was 37. Boxing is a young man's game. It waits for nobody. So here is the opinion, and you heard it here first.
"Moses Itauma will wreck all them all old men out of the division. Usyk, AJ, Miller. Whoever there is that's old. Zhang, whoever else the f*** there is, Luis Ortiz. All these big names of the past.
"Even the man who took my belts. Usyk, Moses will wreck him because it's a young man versus an old man. And an old man can't mess with a young man."
It remains to be seen what lies next for Itauma and the heavyweight division, particularly should Usyk vacate his WBO belt as opposed to defending against mandatory challenger Joseph Parker.
Speaking ahead of Saturday's main event, promoter Frank Warren suggested the winner of Itauma and Whyte could secure a shot at Parker in the event of Usyk vacating.
"What's next?" Itauma himself said after his win over Whyte. "Honestly, I will fight anyone they put in front of me.
"If I be completely honest, Joseph Parker [and Agit] Kabayel do deserve the shot [at Oleksandr Usyk] but I would love to take the opportunity as well.
"Chuck me in there with them lot!"
He now sits a perfect 13-0 as a professional, having stopped each of his last nine opponents inside three rounds.
Usyk is coming off a stunning knockout win over Daniel Dubois, which saw the Ukrainian pound-for-pound great become a three-time undisputed champion.
