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Filip Hrgovic overcomes horror eye injury to defeat David Adeleye

Despite Hrgovic saying it could have been Martin Bakole in the ring with him on Saturday night, he was able to pass the challenge of Adeleye.

The 28-year-old Adeleye had only lost to Fabio Wardley, but has now tasted the second defeat of his career.

There was significant adversity that ‘El Animal’ had to overcome, as he suffered a significant cut to his eye in the early stages of the fight. However, after being permitted to continue by the doctor, Hrgovic had an excellent performance.

Despite moments of success for the British fighter, Adeleye largely struggled with the range and combinations of his Croatian counterpart.

Hrgovic showed a new level of conditioning in his bout with Adeleye, as his high-volume output often left the London-based fighter prioritizing defense.

It was a largely one-sided performance from the former Zhilei Zhang opponent, who made it two wins in a row.

However, an enthralling eighth round would see Adeleye respond from being knocked down by having the Croatian in a great deal of danger, but Hrgovic managed to survive the slugfest.

The commentary team described the eighth round of the bout as one of the ’rounds of the year’ as both men dug deep to hear the bell.

Fans react as Filip Hrgovic and David Adeleye engage in heavyweight slugfest

Fans seemingly enjoyed the heavyweight bout between the Croatian and the Englishman, as both fighters gave the 10-round bout their all.

One user on X wrote in reference to the eighth round, “How did Hrgovic stay up?”

Another fan added, “What a fight, crazy. Hrgovic is clearly winning but it’s crazy,” while another said, “This was a better fight than expected. Both fighters are showing great heart.”

Hrgovic was also given credit by one user for his response to getting the significant cut. “He has been amazing since that cut.”