By: Sean Crose
Atlantic City is a long way away from Saudi Arabia, and that’s no doubt a good thing for Otto Wallin – though he may ultimately be looking forward to a return trip to the Middle Eastern Kingdom. Last December, Wallin stepped into the ring at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh looking to best former multi heavyweight titlist Anthony Joshua. Wallin had every reason in the world to be confident. He had given Tyson Fury all Fury could handle four years earlier and Joshua was still looking to get back on his feet career wise after dropping two in a row to Oleksandr Usyk.
Unfortunately for Wallin, Joshua proved to simply be too strong, too much. While Wallin performed well early on, Joshua was able to break Wallin down, causing the bout to be stopped between the fifth and sixth rounds. Still, while Joshua won the fight, Wallin was not about to call it a career. Joshua himself was coming back from defeat, after all, why couldn’t Wallin? Indeed, the question of how Wallin will look Friday night in his comeback at the Tropicana in Atlantic City is the source of interest among fight fans, especially those with their eyes on the heavyweight division.
Wallin, after all, will be battling Onoriode Ehwarieme in the main event of a Boxing Insider Promotion’s card. The fight, which is scheduled for eight (in the heavyweight division) should offer a good gauge on how Wallin is coming back from the loss to Joshua. It was Joshua, after all, who Wallin fought last. Wallin should at least take comfort in the fact that he’s fighting Ehwarieme at the Tropicana, a location with a rich history of boxing which has showcased such world titlists as Maurice Blocker, James Smith, Buddy McGirt, Jeff Lacy, Dwight Muhammad Qawi, and Eddie Mustafa Muhammad.
Of course, boxing is the sport of the unexpected. There’s always a chance that Ehwarieme can pull off the upset…and what an upset it would be. It’s not too much to say that a Ehwarieme win would shake up the heavyweight division’s foundations. It’s why both Wallin and Ehwarieme will be answering the opening bell on Friday night with their futures, or possible futures, staring them in the eye. Boxing is nothing if not a serious endeavor.
To see Friday’s card live and in person at the Tropicana in Atlantic city, simply click on this link:
