The British heavyweight phenom is facing what should be the toughest test of his professional career to date as he continues on his rapid ascent to boxing superstardom.
Now fully recovered from a bicep tear suffered while sparring, the big-hitting southpaw, 21, is ready to deliver another emphatic statement in what he has called the “final piece of the puzzle” before eyeing huge fights and world title opportunities.
He ruthlessly dispatched of Mike Balogun in two rounds in Glasgow before that as part of a nine-fight streak of early stoppages that also included vanquishing the likes of Demsey McKean and Mariusz Wach.
Itauma is expected to face a trickier challenge against Franklin, the tough and durable American heavyweight who has never previously been stopped in his 26-fight career.
The 32-year-old is 24-2 overall, with his only losses to date coming in consecutive outings in London in 2023.
Moses Itauma stopped Dillian Whyte inside the first round in his last fight
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He has only fought three times since then, outpointing Isaac Munoz Gutierrez and two-time Olympic bronze medalist Ivan Dychko, either side of stopping Devin Vargas.
Itauma vs Franklin fight date and venue
Moses Itauma vs Jermaine Franklin takes place tonight, Saturday March 28, 2026 at the Co-op Live arena in Manchester, England.
Itauma vs Franklin fight time and ring walks
Saturday’s undercard begins at 5pm GMT (1pm ET and 10am PT), with the main event expected to get underway around 11pm (7pm ET and 4pm PT).
How to watch Itauma vs Franklin
TV channel and live stream: The Magnificent 7 show is being broadcast live and exclusive in the UK via DAZN.
It is part of the regular DAZN subscription and not through their pay-per-view service.
Live blog: Follow the action as it happens with Standard Sport’s live blog on fight night.
Itauma vs Franklin undercard
Moses Itauma vs Jermaine Franklin
Nathan Heaney vs Gerome Warburton
Ezra Taylor vs Willy Hutchinson
Shakiel Thompson vs Brad Pauls
Liam Davies vs Francesco Grandelli
Alex Murphy vs Josh Holmes
Michael Gomez Jr vs Jordan Flynn
Nelson Birchall vs Ryan Griffiths
John Joe Carrigan vs Danny Costello
Billy Deniz vs Grant Dennis
Aadam Hamed vs Michael Mooney
Itauma vs Franklin weigh-in results
Itauma hit the scales on Friday at 242.1 pounds, with Franklin weighing in at 258.4 pounds.
Itauma vs Franklin prediction
On paper at least, this should be the most difficult night of Itauma’s explosive career so far.
However, that is certainly not saying much. Aside from early dominant six-round points wins over Kostiantyn Dovbyshchenko and Kevin Nicolas Espindola, he has delivered devastatingly swift knockouts of every opponent he has faced to date.
There is a reason why the likes of the returning Fury want nothing whatsoever to do with fighting Itauma, who has racked up only 26 rounds in 13 pro bouts.
Anthony Joshua was made to work hard by Jermaine Franklin back in 2023
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He has only gone past the second round twice, the last of those was nine fights ago in 2023.
Franklin is a tough and durable customer who has never been stopped and acquitted himself well against both Whyte and Joshua, but is about to face a very different prospect altogether.
He might be make to work slightly harder for it, but we’re still anticipating another formidable stoppage from Itauma comfortably in the first half of the fight.
Having said that, some crucial rounds under the belt would be no bad thing if it was to go on longer.
Itauma to win by knockout.
Itauma vs Franklin latest odds
Itauma to win on points or by decision: 7/2
Itauma to win by knockout, technical knockout or disqualification: 1/4
Franklin to win on points or by decision: 25/1
Franklin to win by knockout, technical knockout or disqualification: 16/1
Odds via Betfair (subject to change).