British heavyweight Moses Itauma visited OPRO’s Hertfordshire headquarters ahead of his first world-title challenge, meeting the team behind one of Britain’s best-known mouthguard brands before facing Filip Hrgović for the vacant IBF heavyweight world title.

At the time of his visit, the 21-year-old was unbeaten in 14 professional fights, with 12 knockouts, and preparing for the biggest night of his career. He faced Hrgović at The O2 in London on Saturday 29 August.

Hrgović ultimately claimed the vacant IBF title, stopping Itauma in the ninth round. It was the first defeat of Itauma’s professional career.

Heading into the fight, Itauma was ranked No.1 by both the WBA and WBO, and No.3 by the WBC. His rapid rise had established him as one of the leading young contenders in the heavyweight division.

His visit to OPRO provided a behind-the-scenes look at an important stage of his career, as he spent time with founder Dr Anthony Lovat BDS and the wider OPRO team at the company’s headquarters.

The partnership brings together one of boxing’s most exciting young heavyweights and a British mouthguard specialist with almost three decades of experience protecting athletes at every level of sport.

OPRO was founded in 1997 by dentist Dr Anthony Lovat and has since provided mouthguard protection to more than 15 million athletes worldwide. Earlier this year, the company was awarded a King’s Award for Enterprise: Innovation 2026 in recognition of its Instant Custom-Fit mouthguard technology.

For Itauma, the title fight represented a pivotal moment in his career. He entered the contest following an emphatic fifth-round stoppage of Jermaine Franklin in Manchester in March, becoming the first fighter to stop the experienced American.

While the result did not go his way, the fight marked an important step in the career of a young heavyweight who has already made a significant impact on the division.

The visit was captured behind the scenes, documenting Moses’ time at OPRO HQ and offering insight into the people and preparation around a major night in British boxing.