TYSON FURY VS MARIUSZ WACH - FULL FIGHT PREVIEW

This weekend sees the return of the Gypsy King himself, Tyson Fury, in familiar but also unfamiliar territory as he takes on the experienced Mariusz Wach in Thailand.

A fight that quite literally came out of nowhere, Fury was initially touted to face Albania's Nelson Hysa before it was confirmed that he would instead be fighting the durable Pole, Wach.

From Wladimir Klitschko to Moses Itauma, Wach is a man who has quite literally fought the who's who of heavyweight boxing over the past 20 years.

Despite now being 46 years of age, he has stayed relatively active, having fought nine times in the last five years. His most recent outing came back in March, when he lost a unanimous decision to the 17-1 Viktor Vykhryst.

Fury, meanwhile, returned to the ring in April after nearly 18 months away and did what he does best, producing an absolute clinic to outpoint the dangerous Russian, Arslanbek Makhmudov, over 12 rounds.

It was the sort of fight in which Fury coasted to victory and probably could have won even more emphatically had he shifted into third gear.

That was, however, Fury's first win in over two years, so he will be looking to secure back-to-back victories for the first time in almost three years.

In terms of the fight itself, it is a complete mismatch. Fury's focus, as much as he tries to deny it, will be on the big carrot that has been dangling in front of him for what feels like the past decade.

That carrot is, of course, the Anthony Joshua fight, which looks set to take place later this year.

It would not be a discredit to Wach to suggest that, really, he is simply there for a payday, to keep Fury sharp and shake off any remaining ring rust ahead of what would be the biggest fight of the Gypsy King's career.

The Pole will come to have a go, there is no doubting that, and if he is to have any chance of winning this fight, he will need to land the biggest punch of his career and hope Fury trips up as he gets back to his feet. At 46, he no longer possesses the sharpness he once had, but the last thing to leave a boxer is their power, and he demonstrated that by stopping Jakub Sosinski back in 2023.

If, and it is one heck of a big if, Wach does cause Fury problems, then it would be a strong indicator that Fury needs to stay well away from the AJ fight.

We highly doubt that will be the case, though.

For the Gypsy King, he simply has to do what he does best: entertain. This fight will end whenever he decides it should.

If he wants to showcase his skills to the locals in his newfound second home of Thailand over a few rounds, he will. If he wants to get Wach out of there as quickly as possible, he will.

This is Tyson giving back to the people of Pattaya in the best way possible by fighting in their hometown and donating all of the profits from ticket sales to the Father Ray Foundation, an organisation that provides care, education, and vocational training for orphaned and abused children in Thailand.

It is a wonderful gesture from the people's champion.

The fight does not currently have a broadcaster, but you will be able to stay up to date with all the action throughout the night across our social channels.