Filip Hrgović (born 4 June 1992) is a Croatian professional boxer. He has held the International Boxing Federation (IBF) heavyweight title since August 2026. As an amateur, he won the gold medal at the 2015 European Championships and a bronze at the 2016 Olympics.
Early life Filip was born on 4 June 1992 in Zagreb, Croatia, to Petar and Iva Hrgović. His father, who was born in Livno, Bosnia and Herzegovina, worked for Croatian Motorways, while his mother, a native of the Croatian capital Zagreb is a graduate in kinesiology and was focused on raising Filip and his four other siblings.
Hrgović recalls being overweight as a child, even earning the nickname "fatty" along the way. He would often end up in trouble and be reprimanded for it.
Hrgović's first sport was basketball at age eight, which he took up as a means to lose weight. He even managed to win the national championship with his club Dubrava but was forced to retire due to back and knee injuries. He then took up swimming, which would also last only a short period of time.
He started boxing at the age of thirteen in the boxing club Leonardo under the tutelage of coach Leonardo Pijetraj in his home district of Sesvete in Zagreb. His mother wasn't overly happy with Hrgović's decision to take up boxing as a profession, but his mind was already made up.
In 2015, Hrgović was awarded the Franjo Bučar State Award for Sport and the award for the best sportsman of Zagreb. In 2016, Hrgović was awarded the Order of Danica Hrvatska with face of Franjo Bučar.
Amateur career World championships Hrgović participated in the 2010 AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships, held in Baku, Azerbaijan. He beat Jozsef Zsigmund in the first round, Fargan Omarov in the quarterfinals and Joseph Parker in the semifinals to earn a place in the tournament finals, where he faced Tony Yoka. It was the first of three future meetings in amateur competitions. He beat Yoka by points to win the gold medal. Hrgović earned a 10,000 kuna payout from the Croatian Boxing Federation for this victory.
In April 2012, Hrgović took part in the European Olympic Qualification tournament, competing in the super-heavyweight category. Despite scoring stoppage victories over Nikita Maculevics and Kaspar Vaha in the preliminary rounds, he would lose by decision to Magomed Omarov in the quarterfinals.
Hrgović took part in the 2013 AIBA World Boxing Championships as well. He beat Guangming Gu by stoppage and Mirzohidjon Abdullaev by decision in the preliminary rounds, to earn a place in the quarterfinals. He lost his quarterfinals bout to Roberto Cammarelle by decision.
Hrgović was the man credited for the cancellation of the David Haye vs Tyson Fury fight in 2013, after he cut Haye in a sparring session. He was also Kubrat Pulev's sparring partner for his fight against Wladimir Klitschko in 2014.
European championships In May 2014, Hrgović fought in the Croatian National Boxing Championship. He won the gold medal by beating Pero Konsuo in the quarterfinal, Josip Granic in the semifinal and Ivan Andrasic in the finals. Hrgović likewise won the 2015 iteration of the tournament as well.
Hrgović qualified for the 2015 European Amateur Boxing Championships. Victories over Dean Gardiner, Mikheil Bakhtidze and Mihai Nistor earned Hrgović a place in the finals, where he was to fight Florian Schulz. It was the first time in eleven years that a Croatian boxer qualified for the finals of the European Amateur Boxing Championships. He won the tournament with a unanimous decision win against Schulz.
He was named March Boxer of the Month in 2015 by AIBA.
Olympic games
The last amateur competition Hrgović competed in was the 2016 Summer Olympics. After beating Ali Eren Demirezen by unanimous decision, Hrgović was scheduled to fight Lenier Peró in the quarterfinals. He beat Pero by TKO. He advanced to the semifinals, where he fought a rubber match with Tony Yoka. Yoka won the fight by a tight split decision, bringing Hrgović's overall score against him to 1–2 in amateur competitions. Despite this loss, Hrgović won a bronze medal.
After the Olympics, he was awarded the Order of Danica Hrvatska with face of Franjo Bučar by President of Croatia, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, for extraordinary sports success and winning a medal at the Olympics, and also for the promotion of sports and the reputation of the Croatia in the world.Vijesti: Dodijeljena odlikovanja izraz su priznanja i zahvalnosti za rad i doprinos razvoju i napretku Republike Hrvatske
Professional career Early career On 30 September 2017, Hrgović started his professional career with a first-round stoppage victory over Raphael Zumbano of Brazil. Hrgović signed a deal with Sauerland Promotions following his debut.
For his second professional fight, Hrgović was scheduled to fight the former Czech Heavyweight boxing champion Pavel Sour. The fight was evenly contested for the majority of the first round, until Hrgović landed a flurry 30 seconds before the end, knocking out Sour with a right hook.
Hrgović was scheduled to fight the Tom Little, who was on a three-fight winning streak, on the undercard of the World Boxing Super Series semi-final clash between Oleksandr Usyk vs Mairis Briedis. Hrgović dominated throughout the fight, pressuring with a jab-right hand combination. He finally managed to knock Little down near the end of the fourth round, dropping his opponent with a right straight. Although Little managed to beat the ten-count, he had a cut over his left eye, and would quickly lose by technical knockout.
Hrgović was expected to face Sean Turner, at the time the #46 ranked heavyweight according to Boxrec, on the undercard of the WBSS semifinal bout contested by Callum Smith and Nieky Holzken. Hrgović remained dominant in all eight rounds, with two of the three judges scoring the fight 80–72 in his favor, and the third judge scoring it 79–73.
In his fifth professional fight, Hrgović was scheduled to fight the undefeated Mexican heavyweight Filiberto Tovar. It was the first time in Hrgović's career that he was scheduled to fight a ten-round bout. Hrgović once again dominated, stunning Tovar in first, second and third rounds, although he couldn't knock him down. Midway through the fourth round, Tovar's corner threw in the towel, awarding Hrgović a TKO victory.
Following his five straight victories, Hrgović was shortlisted for The Ring magazine Prospect of the Year award.
Hrgović was scheduled to fight Amir Mansour on 8 September 2018, for the WBC International heavyweight title. It was both the first time Hrgović fought in his native Zagreb, as well as the first time he was scheduled to fight in a twelve-round bout. In the first round, Hrgović utilized half-feints and jabs to pressure his opponent back, relying on his height and length to insulate him from Mansour's lunges. There was a brief break in action during the second round, after Mansour landed a blow to the back of Hrgović's head. After the break, the fight continued in the previous tempo, with Hrgović achieving a technical knockout win after knocking Mansour down twice in the third round.
Hrgović was expected to make the first defense of his secondary title against Ytalo Perea on 8 December 2018, at the Dražen Petrović Basketball Hall in Zagreb, Croatia. It was scheduled to be broadcast exclusively by RTL, domestically in Croatia. Perea was forced to withdraw two days prior to the bout due to travel visa issues, and was replaced by former world title challenger Kevin Johnson. Hrgović retained his title by unanimous decision, with all three judges awarding him all eight rounds of the fight. He dominated the bout from start to finish and came close to knocking Johnson down with an overhand right in the eight round, although he was unable to finish him. Hrgović was scheduled to make his second title defense against the 15–1 Gregory Corbin on 25 May 2019 at the MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill. The bout was broadcast domestically in Croatia by RTL and internationally by DAZN. It was Hrgović's United States debut, as well as his DAZN debut. He won the fight by a first-round knockout, stopping Corbin after just 60 seconds, with his fourth strike of the bout.
Hrgović had his first fight in Mexico on 24 August 2019, against Mario Heredia, at the Centro de Usos Multiples in Hermosillo, Mexico. Heredia entered the fight off an upset with against Samuel Peter, but was seen as an easy fight for Hrgović, as he had lost five of his past six bouts. Although he started slowly, Hrgović maintained a steady stream of jabs, right straights and hooks throughout the first round. Heredia attempted to adjust by landing a number of body shots in the second round, which failed to stop the forward movement of Hrgović. The fight ended in the third round, as Heredia was knocked out with a right-left hook combination.
On 7 December 2019, on the undercard of Ruiz Jr. vs. Joshua II, Hrgović, then ranked #9 by the WBA and IBF, and #11 by the WBC, had what is perhaps his most notable win to date, a third-round knockout against Éric Molina. He dominated the fight from the first bell, dropping Molina twice; once in the first round and again in the second, before finally closing out with a third knockdown in the third round, from which Molina wasn't able to get up. Hrgović was expected to next face Ondřej Pála in the co-main event of the Dina Thorslund vs. Nina Radovanović title fight, held on 26 September 2020, at the Struer Energi Park in Struer, Denmark. Three days before the fight, Pála withdrew for an undisclosed reason, and was replaced on short notice by Alexandre Kartozia. Hrgović justified his role as the betting favorite, pressuring Kartozia throughout the fight, and knocking him out with a left-right combination at the 1:07 minute mark.
Two months after his victory over Kartozia, Hrgović was scheduled to fight Rydell Booker for the vacant IBF International Heavyweight title on 7 November 2020, at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, in Hollywood, Florida, in his return to the United States. Hrgović entered the bout as a –10000 betting favorite, while most odds-makers had Booker at +1400. He justified his role as the betting favorite, stopping Booker with a flurry of punches in the fifth round.
Following Hrgović's victory over Booker, Michael Hunter called for a fight between the two, claiming he had asked for the fight numerous times before. Although the fight didn't materialize at the time, IBF announced in February 2021 that the #5 ranked Hrgović and #4 ranked Hunter would fight to determine who would be the mandatory challenger for Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight title. The organization gave both fighters until 26 February 2021, to accept the bout. Both fighters accepted the fight, although the time and place of it weren't immediately revealed, as they were to be determined after a bidding took place on 6 April 2021. The bidding was later postponed. The purse bid was eventually won by Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing, who bid $606,666 for the fight, with a 60–40 split in favor of Hunter. Hunter withdrew from the bout following the purse bid.