Otto Wallin (26-2, 14 KOs) hopes to start another run at the top of the heavyweight division this Friday, July 26 at the Tropicana in Atlantic City on DAZN. Matched against the power-punching Olympian from Nigeria Onoriode Ehwarieme (20-4, 19 KOs) atop a Boxing Insider Promotions card, the opportunity will be there to start that drive off with a bang.
Wallin has been near the top before– two times.
Back in 2019, the Swedish southpaw came excruciatingly close to an upset of a Tyson Fury who had just signed a co-promotional deal with Top Rank and was being featured on ESPN. He nearly put an end to the promotional goal of Fury conquering America.
Wallin opened a horrendous gash over The Gypsy King’s right eye that reportedly required 47 stitches. At various points, there was doubt as to whether the bout should continue. There was even some controversy as ESPN crossed ethical lines to inform Fury’s corner between rounds that the cut they thought was accidental was determined to be caused by a punch.
The information forced Fury to box harder and avoid pulling himself out of a fight that had become sloppy-bloody and utterly nightmarish.
Fury would hold on to take a unanimous decision and Wallin would be forced to regroup.
Seven fights and nearly four years later, Wallin brought himself back to the near-top once again, matched against former three-belt heavyweight champion and former sparring partner Anthony Joshua.
This one, unfortunately for Wallin, did not go his way at all.
Joshua crushed him and crushed his nose, forcing a corner stoppage between rounds five and six.
“I really have no excuses; he was just better,” Wallin told media days later. “He did really well, used his reach effectively, and landed some really good shots. He was simply better. I think he had a good game plan. He felt like a very skilled fighter, and obviously, it was a much tougher fight than what I had with Tyson Fury.”
Living and training in the New York area, working under the guidance of former two-division world champ Joey Gamache, Wallin is back on the move and back in the rankings. The IBF ranks him no. 11 in the heavyweight division and the WBC just recently moved him up to no. 15. A win this Friday– in his first fight since the Joshua loss last December– will keep his upward career trajectory going.
With unified world champ Oleksandr Usyk having earned top dog status with wins over both Fury and Joshua, the Ukraine native is now the target at the top of the big man food chain. Wallin will be pushing for a Usyk fight or for another big-ticket bout in a heavyweight scene now pretty much funded and run by Saudi Arabia.
But that push starts this Friday in Atlantic City…and it ends if he can’t get past Ehwarieme.
Weights:
- Otto Wallin 244 lbs. – Onoriode Ehwarieme 226 lbs.
- Jason Castanon 139 lbs. – Arevonte Dukes 136 lbs.
- Justin Figueroa 159 lbs. – Freddy Espinoza 159 lbs.
- Bruce Seldon Jr. 229 lbs. – Isiah Margheim 243 lbs.
- Jacob Riley Solis 162.5 lbs. – James Abraham 164 lbs.
- Marco Romero 168 lbs. – Victor Pradis 168 lbs.
- Stacia Suttles 140 lbs. – Kalinda Faria 139 8 lbs.
Paul Magno has over forty years of experience in and around the sport of boxing and has had his hand in everything from officiating to training. As a writer, his work has appeared on Yahoo Sports, Fox Sports, Fight Hype, Max Boxing, Boxing.com, Inside Fights, The Queensberry Rules, Overtime Heroics, Bleacher Report, and Premier Boxing Champions. He is currently the owner and managing editor or The Boxing Tribune. You can follow his Twitter/X account, @boxing_tribune, for breaking boxing news, analysis, and sometimes NSFW commentary. For Advertising, Inquiries, etc., send him an email here: paulmagno@theboxingtribune.com