LAS VEGAS -- There will be no title belts on the line come Sept. 14 when Tyson Fury and Otto Wallin step in the ring. What will be on the line when the two meet on ESPN+ is Fury's status as the lineal heavyweight champion of the world, a status he gained by beating Wladimir Klitschko in 2015. While Fury will look to hold on to that lineal title and grow his popularity, Wallin will be looking to score a major upset against the only notable opponent of his career.
You might not think it by looking at him but Fury (28-0-1, 20 KOs) is one of the most skilled heavyweights in the division. The U.K. native also happens to be very light on his feet, which is uncommon for a man of his gargantuan size. Fury stands at 6-feet, 9-inches and has a reach of 85-inches. That reach helps Fury control the distance with his excellent jab and he follows that punch with an accurate straight right hand. While his left hook is also a solid punch he doesn't posses the one-punch knockout power of other heavyweights. He makes up for that lack of power with a high ring IQ and quick reflexes that allow him to get his offense off without having to take too much return fire. While Fury has been dropped a few times in his career he has always been able to beat the count and fight on.
On Fury's way to the top of the heavyweight division he beat fighters who seem to be on every top fighters resume, fighters like Dereck Chisora, Nicolai Firtha, and Kevin Johnson. The biggest win of his career came back in 2015 when he outpointed Klitschko to take his WBA, IBF, and WBO titles. Then, due to a mix of drugs, depression, and suspensions Fury was out of boxing for nearly three years. He returned to the ring and took on two lesser fighters before stepping up to challenge Deontay Wilder for his WBC title. Fury boxed well in that bout but was also dropped twice and came away with a split draw. Since that draw Fury hasn't exactly challenged himself. First he took on the unknown Tom Schwarz and now he will get in the ring with another fighter most fans have never heard of in Wallin.
Wallin (20-0, 13 KOs) isn't a small heavyweight but he will be the smaller man when he enters the ring against Fury. The southpaw works behind his jab but it isn't nearly as good as Fury's. Fury won't have to worry much about Wallin's right hook because the Swede rarely throws it. Instead he relies on his left hand to do damage. While that left hand from Wallin has good power he isn't an overwhelming puncher and his hands aren't exceptionally fast. He also doesn't work that well from the inside but he will have to slip the jab of Fury and get inside if he wants to do any damage. One thing Wallin has going for him is the fact that he's never been dropped as a pro. Unfortunately he also hasn't faced anyone even close to as good as Fury.
The undefeated Wallin has spent most of his career fighting in Sweden, Germany, and Switzerland. Of those three countries only Germany is known for producing good fighters. Wallin hasn't been fighting good fighters though. You would be hard pressed to find a single name on Wallin's resume that the average boxing fan would even recognize and no one comes close to being as good as Fury. This will be by far the toughest and most important fight of Wallin's career. A loss would send him back to obscurity while a win could change his life.
This fight, like all of Fury's recent fights outside of Wilder, should be all Fury. Wallin will stay busy with his jab and he will do his best to land his heavy left hand but it won't be easy for him to find much success. Look for Fury to control things from the outside with his jab and movement to start the fight before sitting down on his punches more as he looks to hurt Wallin. While Fury is great at selling fights and marketing himself, fans won't stick around much longer if he keeps fighting opponents like Wallin, Schwarz, Pianeta, and Seferi.
PREDICTION: Tyson Fury is going to dominate Otto Wallin just like he dominated Sefer Seferi, Francesco Pianeta, and Tom Schwarz. Wallin will give it his best shot but it won't be nearly enough to beat Fury who is going to cruise on his way to a 10th round stoppage victory.
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| Fury, celebrating his knockdown of Tom Schwarz |
On Fury's way to the top of the heavyweight division he beat fighters who seem to be on every top fighters resume, fighters like Dereck Chisora, Nicolai Firtha, and Kevin Johnson. The biggest win of his career came back in 2015 when he outpointed Klitschko to take his WBA, IBF, and WBO titles. Then, due to a mix of drugs, depression, and suspensions Fury was out of boxing for nearly three years. He returned to the ring and took on two lesser fighters before stepping up to challenge Deontay Wilder for his WBC title. Fury boxed well in that bout but was also dropped twice and came away with a split draw. Since that draw Fury hasn't exactly challenged himself. First he took on the unknown Tom Schwarz and now he will get in the ring with another fighter most fans have never heard of in Wallin.
Wallin (20-0, 13 KOs) isn't a small heavyweight but he will be the smaller man when he enters the ring against Fury. The southpaw works behind his jab but it isn't nearly as good as Fury's. Fury won't have to worry much about Wallin's right hook because the Swede rarely throws it. Instead he relies on his left hand to do damage. While that left hand from Wallin has good power he isn't an overwhelming puncher and his hands aren't exceptionally fast. He also doesn't work that well from the inside but he will have to slip the jab of Fury and get inside if he wants to do any damage. One thing Wallin has going for him is the fact that he's never been dropped as a pro. Unfortunately he also hasn't faced anyone even close to as good as Fury.
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| Wallin, landing a straight left hand |
This fight, like all of Fury's recent fights outside of Wilder, should be all Fury. Wallin will stay busy with his jab and he will do his best to land his heavy left hand but it won't be easy for him to find much success. Look for Fury to control things from the outside with his jab and movement to start the fight before sitting down on his punches more as he looks to hurt Wallin. While Fury is great at selling fights and marketing himself, fans won't stick around much longer if he keeps fighting opponents like Wallin, Schwarz, Pianeta, and Seferi.
PREDICTION: Tyson Fury is going to dominate Otto Wallin just like he dominated Sefer Seferi, Francesco Pianeta, and Tom Schwarz. Wallin will give it his best shot but it won't be nearly enough to beat Fury who is going to cruise on his way to a 10th round stoppage victory.
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