Tyson Fury versus Otto Wallin may be more warm-up act than main event. After all, like Deontay Wilder, The Gypsy King has his sights set on a 2020 rematch with the American. But should Wallin, the undefeated Swede, be written off before the fighters have set foot in the ring or does he have weapons the English brawler should be worried about?

The latest boxing odds heavily favour Fury as if the fight is just the hors d'oeuvre before the man from Manchester sets out to settle his score with Wilder. With bet365 having the Wythenshawe-born man at 1/25, you wonder why anyone would give Wallin a prayer. Yet, we’ve seen boxing upsets before and few predicted the recent downfall of Anthony Joshua.

Fury’s fight with Wilder, almost a certainty for 2020, is already getting plenty of press. While both boxers have tricky matches ahead of them, The Bronze Bomber was quick to jump on Wallin’s perceived weaknesses asking why Fury is considering such a fight. Wilder recalled in a recent interview his draw in Los Angeles with Fury. He said he gave his opponent a concussion in that match and now Fury’s team are “making sure they get him to the prom. I’m his prom.”

 Certainly, if you were to compare each of the heavyweight unification contenders’ fights in the lead-up to a re-match there’s no question Wilder has the tougher opponent. He did beat Luis Ortiz by technical knockout in the tenth round of their bout in March 2018 but it was a close match with all three judges, at the time of the stoppage, having the American ahead by a single point at 85-84.

Perhaps he’s right to mock Fury’s choice of opponent given Wallin’s lack of experience. Yet, the southpaw from Sundsvall in Sweden has been a regular sparring partner of former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, matching-up against him twice at the amateur level.

And he boasts an impressive 21-0 record with 13 KOs. Standing at 6’5”, the 28-year-old has beaten Irineu Beato Costa Junior, Raphael Zumbano and Adrian Granat to confirm he is no pushover. Indeed, his agility in the ring may cause Fury some problems.

The English fighter will also have increased pressure on his shoulders. After all, he’s expected to triumph easily. Not only that, he’s trying to win over a hostile American crowd – his second straight fight in Las Vegas as part of a big-money deal with ESPN. Wallin might not have the big-stage experience but he has enough pedigree to be ranked fourth by the WBA and just outside the top 10 by the IBF.

So, the fight at the MGM Grand in September might not as one-sided as many people predict. While The Gypsy King has one eye on his rematch with Wilder, such preoccupations may help Wallin prove his doubters wrong. At the very least, this looks far less like a warm-up act to Fury-Wilder II, and more like a tricky test for the Englishman on American soil.