Boxing
Jermaine Franklin has one major concern ahead of Moses Itauma fight
Itauma vs. Franklin: Subscribe to watch - Saturday
Jermaine Franklin isn’t expecting any favours from the officials when he returns to the UK on Saturday.
The American takes on rising star Moses Itauma at the Co-op Live in Manchester this weekend as he bids to derail the rapid ascent of arguably the best prospect in world boxing, live on DAZN.
Franklin has fought twice in the UK before and has been quite vocal about how he felt he deserved to get the nod when dropping a majority decision to Dillian Whyte in November 2022, while he didn’t think he got a fair shake from the referee in his wide points loss to Anthony Joshua in April 2023.
Fighting in England doesn’t hold great memories for Franklin but he admits he has mixed feelings about returning to the country for his latest bout.
“I’m 50-50 about it,” Franklin told DAZN News.
“I like fighting for the fans here but this is boxing, I know how it goes - I know I won’t get a fair shot here. It is what it is at this point.
“Boxing is not always fair, in my opinion, and sometimes you’ve just got to get down and dirty.”
Franklin has won all three of his outings since the Joshua defeat and he believes his game has really come on since his last visit to the UK.
The 32-year-old has seen notable improvements in his skills and he thinks the version of himself facing Itauma is a much better one than Joshua beat.
“Yes, I feel like I am a better fighter, [I‘m] more calculated and I can see more.
“My vision and my IQ are probably the two biggest improvements.“
Franklin confident he can cause a huge upset in Manchester
Watch Franklin's interview with DAZN
Despite insisting he is a better fighter now, Franklin admits he didn’t show that in his latest victory over Ivan Dychko at the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas last September.
Franklin picked up a unanimous decision win but his father passed away just two weeks before he got in the ring that night and he said it may have been his hardest fight to date as a result.
“I don’t think I showed that much in the Dychko fight. I had a lot of personal issues going on and that fight was kind of tough for me.
“It was very tough. It was like fighting him and fighting myself at the same time, so it was a very tough fight.
“I was in an awkward space, so, honestly, I probably didn’t even think about the win until a couple of days after. My mind was kind of all over the place at the time.“
Watch Itauma vs. Franklin with a DAZN subscription
Knockout sensation Moses Itauma faces his toughest test against Jermaine Franklin this Saturday night, March 28. Watch exclusively with a DAZN Ultimate subscription to also get PPVs Chisora vs. Wilder (April 4), Wardley vs. Dubois (May 9), and Usyk vs Verhoeven (May 23) included.
