Filip Hrgovic vs Mark De Mori Preview December 23rd, 2023
Unbeaten heavyweight hopeful Filip Hrgovic of Croatia clashes with Australian veteran Mark De Mori this Saturday, December 23rd. The 10-rounder from Saudi Arabia can be seen live in most nations on DAZN pay per view while fans in the UK and Ireland can also pick it up on TNT Sports Box Office. Hrgovic last fought a in August when he stopped Demsey McKean in the 12th round while De Mori last boxed in September when he downed Michael Speed Sigarlaki via an eight-round unanimous decision.
**Watch live on DAZN this Saturday. Your first month is free.
Hrgovic vs De Mori Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Mark De Mori +1500
- Filip Hrgovic -5000
My Pick
The 31-year-old Hrgovic enters the ring with a perfect mark of 16-0 with 13 Ko’s and has gone just 73 rounds since making his pro debut in 2015. He’s one of the new bigger breed of heavyweights as he stands 6-feet-6-inches tall with a reported 82-inch reach. He’s got impressive power in his fists with a current knockout ratio of 81.2 per cent but until beating Zhilei Zhang by a controversial 12-round unanimous decision last year, hadn’t taken on a legitimate contender as his previous wins were against the likes of Marko Radonjic, Rydell Booker, Pavel Sour, Tom Little, Sean Turner, Amir Mansour, Kevin Johnson, Gregory Corbin and Eric Molina.
The only three opponents to go the distance with him so far have been Johnson over eight rounds in 2018, Turner over eight rounds in the same year and Zhang over 12 rounds last August. Hrgovic’s first 12 knockouts came within the first five rounds and he stopped McKean in the final round his last time out. Hrgovic stopped Mansour in the third round in 2018 to take the vacant WBC International Heavyweight Title and defended it three times. He then won the IBF International belt against Booker in 2020 and has defended it twice.
Hrgovic enjoyed a fine amateur career and won a bronze medal as a super heavyweight at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He also reached the quarterfinals at the 2011, 2013 and 2015 World Amateur Championships and won the 2010 Youth World Championships as well as the 2015 European Championships. In addition, Hrgovic went 25-4 with 10 Ko’s in the World Series of Boxing from 2010 to 2015.
The 41-year-old De Mori enters the ring with a fine record of 41-2-2 with 26 Kos to his name. He measures 6-fee-2-inches tall with an unlisted reach so gives up four inches in height to Hrgovic. De Mori also has good power as 87.8 per cent of his victories have been by stoppage including his last 13. He turned pro back in 2004 following an amateur career and has fought 154 rounds since. He also dabbled in promoting and was a pro boxing judge back in 2008. His first defeat came at the hands of John Wyborn by a first-round KO in 2009 and he didn’t lose again until David Haye halted him in just 131 seconds in 2016.
De Mori fought to six-round draws against Alex Leapai in 2004 and Elisara Sii Uta in 2006 and has won 11 fights in a row since losing to Haye. However his list of opponents isn’t exactly the cream of the heavyweight crop as his biggest wins have been against the likes of Ed Mahone, Damon Reed, Dominique Alexander, Marcel Zeller and Laszlo Toth. De Mori won the vacant WBA Asian Continental Heavyweight Title in 2012 by stopping Rob Calloway in the fourth round and the vacant WBU Belt in 2013 when Adnan Buharalija couldn’t continue after the fifth round. He then added the vacant WBF Crown the same year with a 12-round unanimous decision over Ivica Perkovic.
The Australian taught himself to box after watching old fights on You Tube, but has a habit of keeping his hands too low. He moved to Croatia several years ago and was trained by Marijo Sivolija, who is a former two-time Olympian from 2004 and 2008. De Mori also got advice and tips back then from former heavyweight champ Tim Witherspoon. He isn’t the fastest starter in the world though and needs to make sure he doesn’t get caught early by Hrgovic.
Prediction…
De Mori has power, but he hasn’t faced top-level opposition over the years, but neither has Hrgovic really. De Mori has a puncher’s chance here but at 10 years older than Hrgovic isn’t likely to outbox him. Hrgovic is the betting favourite and that’s understandable but the odds seem quite a bit too wide as he hasn’t been that impressive lately. Both guys are heavy hitters who aren’t really interested in what the judges have to say as they prefer to end things before going to the scorecards. De Mori has nothing to lose here as he’s nearing the end of his career and should let his hands go when he gets the chance He may decide against that though since both of his losses have been by first-round knockouts. An upset is possible here but not likely as Hrgovic should come out on top by stoppage if he hopes to be taken seriously as a heavyweight contender.
Hrgovic needs to stop De Mori.
Play: Hrgovic -5000 @ BetOnline.ag
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Filip Hrgovic betting • Mark de Mori betting