A night of heavyweight boxing dominates the card on Dec. 23 when former unified champ Anthony Joshua takes on Otto Wallin in the headliner that also features Deontay Wilder against Joseph Parker. It was reported a few months ago that Joshua and Wilder could possibly square off but recent changes have the contenders fighting different opponents on the same ticket. After losing his belt in the first of back-to-back decision losses to Oleksandr Usyk, Joshua rebounded with a pair of wins, most recently a KO of Robert Helenius in August. Oddsmakers pegged Joshua as a -450 favorite.
A regional champ in the European market, Wallin earned praise by going the distance with current WBC heavyweight champ Tyson Fury in 2019. Though he lost a unanimous decision, which was and still is his only setback, Wallin connected on a few blows and made things interesting as a nearly 10/1 underdog. Since then Wallin is 6-0 with impressive wins over Murat Gassiev and Dominic Breazeale in that stretch. Wallin opened as a +322 dog on the boxing betting line.
Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin Betting Odds
Anthony Joshua -450
Otto Wallin +322
The 12-round heavyweight bout between former champ Anthony Joshua ( 26-3, 23 KOs ) and Otto Wallin ( 26-1, 14 KOs ) will take place on Saturday, December 23, 2023 from Riyadh’s Kingdom Arena in Saudi Arabia. The fight will air on DAZN pay-per-view.
Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin Fight Preview
It’s easy to see why Joshua is a big favorite in this bout. He’s been fighting for heavyweight titles since 2014 securing the IBF crown with a second-round KO of Charles Martin in 2016. Just over a year later Joshua scored an 11th round TKO of Wladimir Klitschko in a unification bout. There was a provision for a rematch, however at age 41 Klitschko announced his retirement shortly after that fight.
After three successful title defenses, Joshua suffered his first professional defeat with Andy Ruiz Jr. knocking him down several times before the fight was stopped in the seventh round. Ruiz was a massive underdog in that bout with his win considered one of the biggest upsets in boxing history. Six months later the two squared off in a rematch with Joshua trimmed down from the first fight. He was more disciplined in his approach and didn’t allow Ruiz to get in close for a knockdown like the previous bout. Joshua scored a dominant unanimous decision to reclaim the belts.
Following a KO of mandatory challenger Kubrat Pulev, Joshua was set to fight former cruiserweight champ Oleksandr Usyk. In another upset, Usyk used constant movement and his southpaw style to score a unanimous decision. The rematch clause was invoked and the two squared off again 11 months later in what was the 12th consecutive heavyweight title fight for Joshua. While this one was closer, Joshua lost a split decision.
One advantage that Wallin has is his southpaw style. We saw Joshua struggle against Usyk and his return to the ring was motivated by one thing, “money, money, money.” Wallin can’t be taken lightly as his fight with Fury can attest. Wallin had the early advantage opening a cut about Fury’s eye, but he couldn’t put the champ away eventually losing on all three scorecards. However, that fight opened doors allowing Wallin to become a contender in the weight class.
Wallin won a comfortable unanimous decision over former title challenger Breazeale in 2021 and most recently scored a split decision win over former cruiserweight champ Gassiev in what some called the biggest of Wallin’s career to date.
Bet Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin
I believe this fight is going to be much closer than the odds suggest. While he doesn’t have the KO power, Wallin hasn’t hit the canvas in his pro career and he’s coming off an upset win. Joshua has had problems with unorthodox fighters and unless he changes his routine I can see another upset brewing. Wallin isn’t going down so this fight has a good chance of going the distance. However, Joshua has the skillset to be successful in this fight even if he’s not at his best. I wouldn’t be surprised to see an upset, but Joshua is the all-around better boxer.
Boxing Odds Pick: Anthony Joshua / Decision
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