Otto Wallin on growth from Tyson Fury bout and Anthony Joshua’s power

Otto Wallin fights for the first time since losing a decision to Tyson Fury. Wallin learned a lot from the loss, and he’s ready to show he’s an elite boxer.

As Otto Wallin goes into his heavyweight boxing bout against Travis Kauffman on Saturday, Aug. 15, he’s ironically more confident since losing his first professional fight against Tyson Fury.

Wallin (20-1, 13 KOs), 29, of Sweden, was a massive underdog against Fury in September of 2019. He was relatively unknown despite his undefeated record at the time. No one gave him a chance against Fury, this writer included.

He lost the contest but proved everybody wrong about his quality as a fighter. Wallin is a skilled boxer who can give any one of the top heavyweights a problem. He feels like he has gained enough experience to beat them.

In round three of their battle, Wallin shocked Fury, fans, and pundits as he ripped a massive gash over Fury’s right eye with a heavy left hand. The wound required 47 stitches to close. Looking back, Wallin remembers how pumped he was after drawing blood from Fury.

“I was happy when I saw that cut because I knew that one more punch, and that could be it,” recalled  Wallin to FanSided.

Wallin pressed Fury for rounds 4, 5, and 6, but wasn’t the same for the remainder of the fight. He faded, as Fury regained his composure and outboxed Wallin. In hindsight, Wallin believes that the cut didn’t just hurt Fury.

“One thing I would say is that I could have paced myself a little better,” said Wallin. “I started off good in the fight, but I lost some steam towards the second half of the fight, and he took over more.”

Wallin added, “It could have distracted me a little bit because I tried to go after his head a little more and tried to hit the cut. I felt like that maybe played in his favor because he’s got good defense and good head movement. He wants you to go for his head like that.”

It has been 11 months since his loss to Fury, but Wallin feels like he learned invaluable lessons in defeat. Wallin also proved to the world that he is a dangerous heavyweight and wants to earn a shot at some of the best boxers in the division.

Otto Wallin’s confidence is sky high since his bout with Tyson Fury, and he wants the best heavyweights in the world.

When asked who are the three names he wants the most, Wallin didn’t hesitate.

“Fury, Joshua, and Wilder,” declared Wallin.

He wants Fury and Joshua the most because they are the current champions, but Wallin and Joshua have a history.

“We fought twice as amateurs, and I was sparring him in 2016,” said Wallin of his experience with Joshua. “We sparred a lot there when he  fought Charles Martin.”

Joshua won both of their amateur matchups, but Wallin thought they were close fights that could have been judged in his favor.

“And I’ve got both those fights on tape,” said Wallin. “When I watched it, I feel like it could of gone either way, but it was close fights. I felt like I need one more shot to beat him. The third time is the charm.”

Wallin desires another chance at Joshua but also praised his abilities. To this day, Joshua is the hardest puncher Wallin has ever fought.

“The one that punches the hardest is [Anthony] Joshua,” declared Wallin.

A title shot could be in Wallin’s future, but he needs several big wins to work his way up the rankings, starting with Kauffman in a featured bout on Showtime.

Kauffman (32-3, 23 KOs), 34, of Reading, Pennsylvania, hasn’t fought in almost two years, but he has a habit of giving all of his opponents a tough fight. He was an amateur standout who packs a powerful punch of his own.

“We are very serious about Kauffman, and we’ve been studying him a lot,” said Wallin.

If Wallin does the job against Kauffman and follows it up with a marquee win, then a title fight could be on the horizon.

You can watch Otto Wallin vs. Travis Kauffman on the undercard of David Benavidez vs. Roamer Alexis Angulo on Saturday, Aug. 15, on Showtime at 9 p.m. ET.