Jermaine Franklin isn’t merely coming to give the hard-hitting Moses Itauma rounds this Saturday at Co-op Live in Manchester, England.
Itauma, 13-0 (11 KOs), has cemented himself as one of the most promising fighters not just in the heavyweight division, but in boxing. The 21-year-old is yet to box over six rounds and managed only five minutes and 45 seconds worth of ring action last year. That has led to his promoter, Frank Warren, bringing in the experienced and durable Franklin as Itauma’s next foe.
Franklin’s role this weekend in Warren’s eyes is to give his heavyweight prodigy much needed rounds ahead of challenging the division's elite later this year. Few give the 24-2 Franklin a chance of victory.
So how does Franklin feel about the expected role he has been brought into play heading into the scheduled bout this Saturday?
“I'll put it like this, most of my career I've been on the B-side, so even when I started pro I was in everybody's backyards beating them up,” said Franklin. “So, this has been the story my whole career. I don't come here to get knocked out, I don’t come here to get beat up, so it's just words at this point.”
There are high hopes for young Itauma, who has already been picked by many as the heir apparent to Oleksandr Usyk’s heavyweight throne.
Franklin has his own ambitions in the sport.
“To bring the belts back home and be the face of American boxing, that's the goal,” Franklin said. “I don't think [a win over Itauma] directly gets me to a world title shot, but he gets me back in the conversation. I look at every fight the same, every fight's a tough fight, I never overlook anybody, so I treat him like a world champion when we go in there.”
Franklin is fully focused on Itauma and has been watching the youngster’s progression well before he signed to be his opponent.
“I'm a student of the game so I watch a little bit of everybody else around,” he said. “I'm not scared of anybody, I don't like to overthink anybody so everybody's just a man like I am. I mean he's fast, he's got good hand speed.”
Despite Itauma’s impeccable start to his career, Franklin admitted there is still much for the 21 year old to learn about the professional ranks.
“It's a lot of little stuff, like early in the game when you're strong and young you think you can knock everybody out, but the older you get, the more fights you have, you realise that's not possible,” he said. “Some people are gifted, like crazy one punch strength, but a lot of people are not, so if you don't have it, don't expect to just get rid of everybody.
“I had that problem growing up, and then another problem I had was being awfully aggressive, so now I know how to take my time and be calm and use the back foot now – which I actually think I fight better on my back foot in my opinion. But it's just small minor stuff you learn with experience I would say, but those are probably two of the biggest things.”
So how does Itauma compare to Franklin when he was just a young professional learning his trade?
“He looks a little more polished than I was earlier in my career, but in my personal opinion I'm kind of awkward a little bit,” said Franklin. “I box good, but my movement and how I throw punches is probably awkward to other boxers. So I would say he's using his polish as his advantage and I use my awkwardness as my advantage.”
Many believe Itauma is the heavyweight division’s next king.
“I mean, yeah, but that's boxing, in any sport you always project it to be the next or you always compare it to somebody else,” Franklin said of the talk surrounding his foe. “So I would say it's normal, it is a little bit slighted, but it's normal, it happens.”
It is also expected that Itauma will become the first man to stop Franklin this Saturday – something both Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte failed to do.
“I mean, everybody says they've got power until they hit me, and then they second-guess their power,” Franklin said. “So I think after he gets big shots off and you see that doesn't do too much, it might mentally mess with him.
“He's still young, so some stuff he hasn't seen, some stuff he still has to adjust to and capitalize off of, so I think I can use that to my advantage. I'm a good reader, so I feel like if he shows me something in a fight or he starts to become worried, I'll be able to see it and capitalize off of it.”
So, is Franklin’s plan to take Itauma to the deep waters he is yet to swim in?
“My plan is always to win the fight by any way possible,” he said. “Whether that's a unanimous decision, whether it's a knockout, whether it's an ugly close fight and a split, my plan is still to win in any way I've got to get the job done.”
Some will point to the pair's one common opponent, Dillian Whyte, as an indication to how the fight may play out.
Itauma stopped Whyte inside two minutes of the opener back in August; Franklin lost a close decision in 2022.
“It wasn't the same Dillian I fought at all,” said Franklin of Itauma’s contest in August. “Dillian didn't even punch, but Moses did what he came to do. No knock to Moses, he did what he was supposed to do. He's a fighter, but the Dillian I fought was ready to fight.
“I don't know about that Dillian, he was just standing there taking it. He cut a whole bunch of weight and shit, so I don't know if that could have been it. I heard he had a knee injury, but I don't know how true that is. But, you know, this is boxing. A lot of stuff comes out.”
Tom Ivers is a lifelong fight fan and former amateur boxer who has a master’s degree in sports journalism. Tom joined BoxingScene in 2024 and is now a key part of the UK and social media teams.
