Lineal Heavyweight Champion Tyson Fury makes his second appearance on the ESPN+ airwaves this Saturday evening, taking on unbeaten Swedish prospect Otto Wallin at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena.
MMAmania will have LIVE coverage of Saturday’s main event, which begins at 11:00 PM Eastern on ESPN+.
The bout, Fury’s second since signing with Top Rank earlier this year, headlines a card that also features Super Bantamweight Champion Emanuel Navarrete’s latest title defense and a nifty Super Lightweight clash between Jose Zepeda and Jose Pedraza.
Before Fury and Wallin lock horns, let’s take a look and see if we can’t figure out what we’re in for.
Tyson “Gypsy King” Fury
Age: 31
Record: 28-0-1, 20 KO
Last Five Fights: Tom Schwarz (TKO-2), Deontay Wilder (Split Draw), Francesco Pianeta (UD), Sefer Seferi (RTD-4), Wladimir Klitschko (UD)
Significant Victories (other than those mentioned above): Dereck Chisora (x2), Steve Cunningham
VS.
Otto Wallin
Age: 28
Record: 20-0, 13 KO
Last Five Fights: Nick Kisner (NC), Adrian Granat (UD), Srdan Govedarica (KO-3), Gianluca Mandras (TKO-5), Raphael Zumbano
Significant Victories (other than those mentioned above): None
THE FIGHT
A fight being one-sided on paper does not necessarily keep it from being compelling. So long as the underdog has some tool that could conceivably bring them victory, it can generate tension. Consider Dan Henderson; even well past his prime, the possibility of his right hand nuking whoever he faced netted him opportunity after opportunity to face top-notch opposition. The potential for that equalizer playing a factor just has to exist, even if it’s slim.
Otto Wallin doesn’t have an equalizer..
He’s smaller than Fury, doesn’t have one-shot power, and hasn’t beaten anyone better than never-was Adrian Granat. There’s nothing in his technically sound but unspectacular southpaw boxing that suggests Fury will ever have to put his foot on the gas. Unless they have the power to seriously hurt him. “The Gypsy King” can dance circles around just about any heavyweight in the world.
This fight was never meant to be a test for Fury; it’s supposed to keep him busy until his rematch with Deontay Wilder. Even in a sport that can turn on a dime like few others, it’s hard to envision this going off-script. Fury outclasses him with little issue until either the referee or Wallin’s corner decide he’s had enough.
Prediction: Fury via seventh-round technical knockout
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