Hughie Fury hoping to establish heavyweight legacy starting with Mariusz Wach

Heavyweight boxer Hughie Fury wants to prove to the world that he’s worthy of being named as an elite fighter in the division. 

Hughie Fury has all the intangibles to be a great heavyweight, but he has experienced setbacks throughout his boxing career. He’s a member of the famous Fury boxing family and hopes a strong performance against Mariusz Wach will begin his path to heavyweight glory.

Fury (24-3, 14 KOs) is the younger cousin of WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. Like Tyson, Hughie possesses daunting height standing at 6-foot-6 and a long-armed reach of 80 inches. His slick boxing style is reminiscent of Tyson’s since they were both instructed by Hughie’s father, Peter.

The difference is that Tyson is an undefeated champion, and Hughie has three losses on his record. He’s eager to prove that he has learned from those defeats and is ready to go on a tear through the heavyweight division.

“We’ve worked on everything,” said Fury during a recent media call. “It’s going to be a completely different me again. I’m just looking forward to getting in there and showing people what I can do.”

Fury returns to the ring for the first time in nine months on Saturday, Dec. 12, against veteran Mariusz Wach. He was successful in March when he stopped Pavel Sour in the third round, but Fury dropped a decision to Alexander Povetkin the bout before.

The loss to Povetkin marked Fury’s third defeat. His first came in his lone world title shot against Joseph Parker in 2017. His second loss came against Kubrat Pulev in 2018. Fury suffered a bad cut over his eye in that fight, which troubled him throughout the contest.

“In the second round, I got a cut over the eye,” recalled Fury. “The referee came in and basically said they’re going to stop the fight. I went out like a maniac in the third round and gassed myself out.”

Hughie Fury is excited to show his growth as a boxer against Mariusz Wach

Fury is tough and has never been stopped, but he was inactive and reluctant to trade with his opponents during his defeats. If he wants to become a serious heavyweight contender, then something has to change. Fury says that we are going to see a different fighter against Wach.

“Mariusz Wach is a durable opponent,” said Fury. “People are going to see a big, major difference from the last fight to this one.”

Wach (36-6, 19 KOs) is a good opponent for Fury. He won his June bout against Kevin Johnson but is past his prime at 40 years old. Wach challenged Wladimir Klitschko for his world titles in 2012 but lost by decision. He has turned into a gatekeeper since.

Fury has a famous last name, and expectations are high for the 26-year-old from Manchester, England. He fights Wach on his home territory at the SSE Arena in Wembley on the Anthony Joshua vs. Kubrat Pulev undercard. Fury says he doesn’t feel any pressure to live up to the family name.

“It doesn’t bother me,” said Fury. “At the end of the day, we’re fighting men. What we’re born to do is fight.”

A strong knockout performance is what Fury needs on a big stage to propel his efforts to land fights against the best heavyweights in the world. A lackluster decision won’t do him much good in the court of public opinion.

Fury is confident he’s going to open eyes with his display against Wach.

“Trust me, the world is going to be shocked,” declared Fury. “It will show you that I am a world level [fighter] come Saturday.”

You can watch Hughie Fury vs. Mariusz Wach on the undercard of Anthony Joshua vs. Kubrat Pulev on Saturday, Dec. 12, exclusively on DAZN. Undercard coverage begins at 1 p.m. ET, with the main card going off at 5 p.m. ET.