Tyson Fury Set for Tune-Up Fight Ahead of Joshua Showdown

Tyson Fury is set to face Mariusz Wach in a tune-up fight ahead of his highly anticipated showdown with Anthony Joshua.

What happened?

Tyson Fury will meet Mariusz Wach behind closed doors in Thailand, just over 24 hours before Anthony Joshua makes his return to the ring against Kristian Prenga in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Why it matters for Tyson Fury

The warm-up fight is expected to be a foregone conclusion, with Fury predicted to 'wipe the floor' with his opponent. Fury's trainer, Teddy Atlas, believes that the 46-year-old Wach has been knocked out five times and will struggle to last the distance against the 'Gypsy King'.

What comes next?

If Fury emerges victorious, he will meet Anthony Joshua later this year, with the pair finally agreeing to a fight earlier this year. Joshua will be looking to bounce back from a horrific car crash just days after knocking out Jake Paul, and Atlas believes that the former two-time heavyweight champion will be emotionally impacted by the incident.

Atlas told CanadaCasino: "I think the warm-up fights are pretty much foregone conclusions. I'm not knocking anyone who gets in the ring, but in a practical sense, they are foregone conclusions. Wach is 46 years old and has been knocked out five times. With Joshua and Prenga, I think it is all up to Joshua and how long the fight goes. But we don't know where Joshua is emotionally coming off that near-fatal car accident. We don't know how that has impacted him. We saw how a car accident may have impacted Errol Spence."

Atlas believes that Joshua will be able to overcome any emotional impact and emerge victorious, but warns that the fight has been made far too late, with both men having lost multiple times over the last few years. "It's definitely a money grab," he said. "Joshua is two fights on from being knocked out badly against Dubois, Fury has lost a couple of times to Usyk, and both of them have lost their most significant fights of recent times. There is no arguing that both of them have slippage in their performances and in their careers at this point in their lives. They are not spring chickens anymore. They have been in tough fights, and it shows."

What's at stake?

The fight between Fury and Joshua is expected to be a highly anticipated showdown, with both men looking to settle their 10-year feud in November. Atlas believes that the fight has been made far too late, but is still excited to see the two heavyweight icons trade leather.

Atlas said: "Ali and Frazier in Manila were too late. Their skills had been eroded, they had been diminished, but it became one of the great heavyweight fights because they were more available to each other than they would have been when their skills were sharper. The one thing that was not diminished was their character, their resolve, their determination and their championship qualities. So yes, Fury vs Joshua is late, and yes, it's a money grab, but it's still a fight that I'm excited to see."

The fight between Fury and Joshua is expected to be a highly anticipated showdown, with both men looking to settle their 10-year feud in November.