The VegasInsider team sat down with Swedish heavyweight Otto Wallin to discuss the big Tyson Fury-Dillian Whyte fight this weekend. Wallin gave his insights, commenting that Whyte stands a better chance of winning if he is really aggressive against Fury. Here’s what Otto Wallin had to say to VegasInsider:
Whyte needs to be really aggressive and target Fury’s body – he cannot beat Fury when they’re at a distance
Otto Wallin: “I think that anybody that steps in the ring always has a chance and (Dillian) Whyte is a strong guy and he punches pretty hard so a guy like that you can never underestimate.”
“He always has a chance, but to beat (Tyson) Fury he really needs to be aggressive and make it a fight, because he can’t win a boxing match against him when they are at a distance and Fury is out just jabbing and outboxing him the whole night.”
“So, he really needs to be aggressive and bring the fight to Fury, and I feel like he needs to target and hit the body a lot, cause that’s a big target. Fury has good upper body- and head movement and a good defence. So, he should hit the body. And then when Fury gets close, don’t let him tie you up and lean on you, cause that would tire you out and that was part of what he did with me.”
“I think that Whyte needs to be very aggressive and stay on him.”
I feel like Whyte probably doesn’t know what he’s gonna do in the fight – nobody knows
“I think what separates Fury from other opponents is that he’s taller than Whyte and he is big and heavy, but he has still good movement and good fast feet. And when we saw him (Fury) work out, he was light on his feet and was moving around. And he was sparring in a southpaw stance, cause he switches back and forth.”
“I feel like Whyte probably doesn’t know what he’s gonna do in the fight. Nobody knows. Probably Fury doesn’t even know what he’s gonna do.”
“I think that Fury is just gonna come out and try to outbox him. And that’s also his best way cause he would eliminate all Whyte’s chances.”
“But, who knows with Fury. He knows how to come out and try to be aggressive. But if they stand toe-to-toe and slug it out, that is better for Whyte. It gives him more of a chance than if Fury just starts boxing.”
I expect to see something different from both Fury and Whyte
“Yeah, because styles make fights. But at the same time, I think how the fight is gonna play out, is a lot up to Fury. I think that he could just outbox him and stay on the outside the whole night and probably win comfortably.”
“But he has a new trainer that he’s had for his two last Wilder fights, and he’s been much more aggressive with this new trainer. And this trainer, SugarHill (Steward), comes from Detroit, and he’s from the Kronk Gym, and they have a history of being very aggressive fighters and that’s their style.”
“Fury only tried that (being aggressive) with Wilder, and Wilder is much different from Whyte. Because Wilder, is tall and has very good power, but he doesn’t have the best defence. And Fury really figured him out, so it’s not a given that Fury could be so aggressive as with Wilder and knock him out.”
“It doesn’t mean that he can go and be aggressive with Whyte, because Whyte is different. He’s heavier, he fights better on the inside.”
I’ve gotten better since my last fight against Fury, and I know some things that I would do differently if I fought him
“In our fight, he came out boxing more the first six rounds, and then he was really badly cut, in the third round with me. So he had two cuts and that was really bad for him. Then the doctor came in and had a look at it, which is always nerve-wracking, because they can say ‘The fight is off, let’s call it off.’
“But, they let him continue and after the doctor had a look at the cut, he became really aggressive in our fight. So he actually fought with that aggressive style for the last six rounds in our fight. And at that time, it was pretty much what separated us.”
“I think personally now, I’m in a better place. It was a great experience for me to go twelve rounds with him. And I think I’ve gotten better since then, and I know some things that I would do differently if I fought him again.”
Fury had to take this fight – It was either take this fight or he had to release the belt
“It’s a big fight, and Dillian Whyte has been a mandatory challenger for this WBC belt for a really long time. So Fury had to take this fight. It was either take this fight or he had to release the belt.”
“I think he was a mandatory challenger for over a thousand days or something. But there was some controversy. He got knocked out one time with (Alexander) Povetkin and also he failed that drug test during that time.”
“I was obviously going to fight Whyte in October, and the WBC said the winner of your fight, me and Dillian Whyte, were going to fight Fury. Then he pulled out of our fight and they had to wait to get me out of the fight, and now he’s fighting Fury. But, no. He’s been the mandatory challenger, so Fury had to fight him if he wants (Oleksandr) Usyk.”
