Tag

Mariusz Wach

Browsing

British-Nigerian boxer Anthony Joshua has begun preparing for a fight with Tyson Fury by training with a specially made heavy bag replica of the Gypsy King, ahead of both men’s tune-up bouts this weekend.

Joshua and Fury have signed contracts to finally settle a decade’s worth of debate over a domestic showdown, but must first come through separate warm-up assignments, with Joshua facing Kristian Prenga on Saturday in Jeddah and Fury taking on 46-year-old veteran Mariusz Wach in Thailand.

Anthony Joshua

Joshua’s first-ever boxing coach, Sean Murphy, unveiled the bespoke bag and told DAZN it had been designed specifically to resemble Fury, describing it as reproducing the Gypsy King’s chin for practice purposes.

Murphy said Joshua had provided all the bags currently hanging in the gym and had personally funded other refurbishments at the facility, including new ring covers and an overhaul of the female changing room.

Joshua, aged 36, has vowed never to overlook an opponent again after being stunned by Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019 while he had one eye on a prospective fight with Deontay Wilder, though with his Fury deal now signed, he is being careful not to look past Prenga.

The Saturday bout will be Joshua’s first contest since a car accident claimed the lives of two of his close friends, and comes ten days after he stopped Jake Paul in a heavily anticipated crossover fight.

Joshua is expected to dedicate victory over Prenga to his late friends as he continues plotting a route towards the long-awaited Battle of Britain with Fury, aged 37.

Fury locks horns with 46-year-old Polish veteran Wach at the Max Muay Thai Arena in Pattaya, Thailand, on July 24.

Fury is supremely confident of beating Anthony Joshua, but first he must get past Wach

Mariusz Wach

The bout will act as a tune-up fight for Fury ahead of his long-overdue clash with fellow countryman Anthony Joshua.

Organisers have tentatively pencilled AJ-Fury in for November, contingent on Fury beating Wach, and Joshua defeating Kristian Prenga one day later in Saudi Arabia.

Joshua’s undercard was announced earlier today, with world title defences from Hamzah Sheeraz and Josh Kelly set to feature.

There is significantly less name value on Fury’s undercard, although that is to be expected, given that the proceeds are going to charity.

A heavyweight fight between Daniel Baer (15-1-1) of Germany and England’s Simon Ibekwe (6-0) acts as chief support.

Tyson Fury VS Mariusz Wach

The rest of the bill is made up of showcase fights for Michael Flannery (14-1), Lucas Dassios (1-0), Mark Ahondjo (1-0-1) and Arlo Stephens (2-0).

None of their opponents have been confirmed at the time of writing, nor will any of their fights be available to watch live.

Tyson Fury

According to ‘The Gypsy King’, the only cameras that will be present on the night are the ones filming the third series of his Netflix show, At Home With the Furys.

Anthony Joshua has his tune-up fight prepared and Tyson Fury is doing the same thing, one day earlier. Fury will take on journeyman heavyweight and former contender Mariusz Wach on July 24 in Thailand. It’s an odd event, but then again, it’s 2026 and this is boxing. What else do we expect? Let’s talk boxing.

Key Facts at a Glance

  • Date: Friday, July 24, 2026

  • Venue: Max Muay Thai Stadium, Pattaya, Thailand (roughly 2,000 seats, 1,500 VIP tickets)

  • Bout: Fury (35-2-1, 24 KOs) vs. Wach (39-13, 20 KOs), heavyweight, scheduled for 10 rounds

  • Broadcast: None. Per Fury, the fight will not be streamed live.

  • At stake: The inaugural WBC Humanitarian Title. Ticket proceeds go to Pattaya charities.

When Is Tyson Fury Vs. Mariusz Wach?

Tyson Fury VS Mariusz  Wach

Friday, July 24, at Max Muay Thai Stadium in Pattaya. Tapology lists the event at 6:00 a.m. ET, which is an evening card local time. Ring walks have not been announced.

The venue is a bigger story than the matchup. Max Muay Thai Stadium is a kickboxing house that runs cards seven nights a week and seats around 2,000. Fury’s last outing filled Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Visually, the fight could look pretty cool on television because of the intimate setting — despite the peculiar matchmaking. There are only 1,500 VIP tickets for this one, and Fury has said the proceeds go to local charities in Pattaya. The WBC is presenting him with its inaugural Humanitarian Title on the night. Wow. You get a belt. You get a belt. You get a belt.

How Can You Watch Tyson Fury Vs. Mariusz Wach?

You can’t. According to Fury, the fight will not be broadcast live. Instead, it will be filmed by Netflix as part of the third season of “At Home with the Furys.”

Netflix is on the promotional poster, which led several outlets to assume a live stream was coming. BoxingScene reported that no broadcaster is in place and none is being pursued. The cameras in the building are there for the reality show.

So the only way to see this in real time is to be in Pattaya holding one of those 1,500 tickets. That is a genuinely strange sentence to write about a former undisputed heavyweight champion — but again, it’s 2026.

Who Is Mariusz Wach?

Mariusz Wach

A 46-year-old from Poland who went twelve rounds with Wladimir Klitschko in 2012 and has not been near that level since. He is 39-13, has lost seven of his last eight, and dropped a unanimous decision to Viktor Vykhryst in Budapest in March.

Wach has most recently been participating in one-versus-three mixed martial arts fights, so the payday that comes with taking on Fury is seemingly going to be worth his time and effort.

He’s actually done it twice, both times at Prime Show MMA in Poland, fighting three influencers at once under handicap rules.

At six-foot-eight he simply walked them down until they quit. That is the most recent competitive footage of the man sharing a ring with Fury in eleven days. To put it plainly, this is a mismatch of all mismatches — at least on paper.

What Does This Mean For Tyson Fury Vs. Anthony Joshua?

Anthony Joshua and Tyson fury

Joshua will face Kristian Prenga in his tune-up. And while Prenga isn’t expected to provide the stiffest opposition for AJ, most would likely favor him in a fight over Wach. Make of that what you will.

Fury and Joshua have agreed to terms for a fight targeted at the fourth quarter, with Netflix expected to carry it and Wembley the reported frontrunner. Both men have been beaten twice by Oleksandr Usyk, whose own move into a crossover fight says plenty about where the division’s business is heading.

Fury already got his rounds in April, when he outpointed Arslanbek Makhmudov and called Joshua out from the ring on Netflix’s first UK boxing card. That fight had a stadium, a broadcast, and a co-main. This one has none of the three. Whatever Fury is getting out of Pattaya, it isn’t sharpness. He’s seemingly doing a solid to the local government and pushing viewership to his Netflix series. You can’t knock the hustle.

Mariusz Wach, who takes on Tyson Fury in Thailand on July 24, is among the least fancied opponents in recent heavyweight memory.

The 46-year-old has lost 13 times, with five of those coming inside schedule, and he’s nine years removed from his last meaningful victory. That he’s even a 20-to-1 shot to win the fight seems generous.

He has been chosen so Fury can fill some time while Anthony Joshua, who he’s supposed to face in November, engages in his own warm-up bout with a rank outsider. Joshua fights Kristian Prenga, a 17-to-1 underdog, on July 25 in Saudi Arabia.

Fury insists he’ll take Wach seriously. But the 37-year-old former champion doesn’t want the fight to be broadcast on any network. The only people who will watch live, he insists, will be those inside Pattaya’s Max Muaythai Stadium. The only cameras present will be those filming for the third season of Netflix series, At Home With the Furys.

The whole exercise feels like it will be little more than a glorified sparring session.

Tyson Fury

Not so, says Wach. The Pole is talking up his chances of springing what would be one of the biggest in the history of the banner division.

“I’m very serious in every professional fight,” he told TalkSport.

“I’ve lost a few fights recently, but I will do my best to stop Tyson Fury versus Anthony Joshua from happening.

“I think that Tyson Fury will not be 100 per cent prepared for this fight because he is thinking about this fight with Joshua… I hope that he is very focused on making the Netflix series and that it will affect his preparation.”

Wach could have a point. We’ve seen Fury labor in the past when faced with opponents he doesn’t deem a threat heading in. Francis Ngannou in 2023 being the most obvious example. Fury was supposed to turn up, win at a canter, then sign to fight Oleksandr Usyk. It turned into a mighty scare for the then-WBC titlist.

But unlike with Ngannou, the MMA star who made his debut while taking Fury the full 10 rounds, even dropping him along the way, Fury knows what Wach is all about. They were sparring partners once upon a time.

“Tyson is a big fighter, he has very good legs, he has a good balance, he is dynamic, he’s fast, he’s very strong,” Wach said.

“I sparred with him a few years ago. He was one of the fighters I wanted to fight most. am not afraid of Tyson,” he promised. “I am not afraid of the heat and humidity.”

A few weeks after Anthony Joshua vs. was announced for July 25, live on DAZN and Ultimate Tier, Tyson Fury swooped right in and announced that he’ll be fighting former world heavyweight title challenger Mariusz Wach on July 24.

Anthony Joshua

Way to steal some thunder and shift the pressure onto Joshua, right? Well, barring any unforeseen events, ‘AJ’ and ‘The Gypsy King’ will clash during the fourth quarter of 2026 in a massive heavyweight tilt that has been a decade-plus in the making.

There’s something I really like about the way this collision course is taking shape and there’s a particular item that’s sparking a sharp cause of concern. I explain both below here.

After Tyson Fury outpointed Arslanbek Makhmudov via unanimous decision in April, ‘The Gypsy King’ and Anthony Joshua had a compelling exchange. It took place when Fury grabbed the mic and tried to force AJ’s hand into verbally accepting a fight. “I challenge you, Anthony Joshua, to fight me, ‘The Gypsy King, NEXT!” Fury exclaimed, his voice roaring with each word. “DO YOU ACCEPT MY CHALLENGE!?”

Tyson Fury

Joshua, sitting ringside, remained composed and kept his steely gaze laser-focused on Fury without caving into his demands. Instead, he offered: “You ain’t gonna tell me what to do. I’ve been chasing you for the last 10 years. When you’re ready, you come and see me and tell me your terms and conditions, and I’ll have you in the ring when I’m ready. I’m the boss. You work for me. I’m the landlord, remember that.”

It was a moment of pristine gamesmanship.

Fast forward a bit from there and Joshua had his June 1 launch press conference to formally announce his July 25 fight against Kristian Prenga.

On June 30, Fury vs. Mariusz Wach was announced for July 24 — a day before Joshua’s fight.

Just like that, the Fury-Joshua gamesmanship continued … and I love it.

This will likely progress with their post-bout comments from their respective scraps and well into their own mega fight promotion.

The more gamesmanship we get, the better the build for this star-studded fight. I’m all for it.

What concerns me about Fury and Joshua having fights a day apart: The risk of it all

As highly-anticipated as this mega merger is between Fury and Joshua, a part of me would rather just have them head into their super fight than have these tune-up bouts. After all, is there any such thing as a true warm-up fight in the heavyweight division?

anthony joshua and tyson fury

I was there in 2019 reporting live during the buildup to Joshua vs. Andy Ruiz in New York City and like many, thought AJ was going to record another resounding knockout. Instead, Joshua got knocked down four times and stopped in one of the biggest upsets not only in boxing history, but sports, period.

Fury and Joshua will be sizeable favorites heading into their respective fights. Yet, Prenga (20-1, 20 KOs) is a 6-foot-5 Albanian who counts all 20 of his professional victories by knockout. At 46, Wach (39-13, 20 KOs) has no business defeating Fury. Still, you just never know.

If either man takes what would be an unforeseen loss, it would definitely strip some luster from their collision course. So a part of me would rather see this time used as a promotional tour that touches down in every boxing hotbed such as Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York City, and Riyadh before rightfully ending in England.

Yes, they could still do this kind of media blitz closer to their fight. But having these warm-up fights are a risk, especially in boxing’s glamour division where any heavyweight is one punch away from segueing from massive underdog to triumphant winner.