If there was ever a fight where the final scorecards didn't tell the complete story, Tyson Fury defending his lineal heavyweight championship on Saturday over Otto Wallin was it.
Fury (29-0-1, 20 KOs) overcame a pair of nasty cuts above his right eye and survived being rocked in a shaky final round to outpoint Wallin (20-1, 13 KOs) via unanimous decision at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Although the judges' scores of 116-112, 117-111 and 118-110 turned out to be wide in Fury's favor because of his dominant power punching in the second half, the ringside doctor closely monitored a right eye that was initially cut in Round 3 and appeared just a hard punch or two away from forcing the fight to be stopped throughout.
"I am a Gypsy warrior and this is Mexican Independence Day. Come on Mexico!" said Fury, who entered the ring wearing a sombrero while dressed in colors of the Mexican flag. "It was a good performance and I got a good 12 rounds in. Otto Wallin was a tough Swede. Blood, guts, heart and all was shown tonight."
The urgency of the cut quickly turned Fury from his default slick boxing style into that of an aggressive puncher who repeatedly stung the 28-year-old Wallin down with body shots and looping hooks. Fury also showed a ton of grit and used his size well in close to lean on Wallin and wear him down.
"I didn't get the scorecards but I did everything I could," Wallin said. "I tried my best and Tyson was a great champion."
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Wallin, a native of Sweden, gave a good representation of himself in his first bout against elite competition. Despite being outlanded by a margin of 179 to 121, according to CompuBox, Wallin used his size well to compete on the inside and overcame the 6-foot-9 Fury's seven-inch reach advantage early by using pressure to force Fury to the ropes.
It was in the corner in Round 3 where an overhand left from Wallin caused the bad cut on the right eyebrow of Fury. A second cut developed two rounds later on the same eyelid of Fury following an accidental head butt.
"I got caught early on with the inside of the glove on the eyelid, which cut the eye and it changed the fight completely," Fury said. "For the majority of the fight, I couldn't see out of the eye and then with the southpaw-orthodox clash, a head butt opened up a second cut."
Ordered by trainer Joey Gamache to target the cut continuously, Wallin drew the ire of Fury in Round 6 when he used the thumb of his glove to intentionally rake the open cut in hopes of forcing an early stoppage.
"I tried to hit it even more. I know it was a punch that [created the cut] in the corner," Wallin said. "I was happy that he was cut but I wish I could have kept up a little more on it. But [my performance] tells me that nobody can question my heart and question that I'm a good fighter."
A pair of big right hands from Fury late in Round 7 backed up Wallin and hurt him. From there, Fury began to dominate the second half of the fight by routinely hurting Wallin but could never package enough clean blows consecutively to force a stoppage.
Gamache urged Wallin after Round 11 to use his footwork to attack Fury in the final round and the advice paid off as Fury was visibly hurt twice by a pair of clean left hands that forced the champion to clinch as blood flowed down his face. Not only was Fury lucky to finish the fight on his feet, he was equally fortunate the doctor wasn't summoned a second time to examine the damage of the two cuts.
"Big congratulations to Otto and rest in peace to his father. I know he would be very, very proud of his performance," Fury said. "It was a great fight.
"It's all heart and determination. If I can keep going, I will keep going. He kept coming. He's 6-foot-6 inches tall and didn't know how to lose but I was a bad man."
The win kept alive hopes for a Feb. 22 pay-per-view rematch against Wilder that both camps have already signed a deal for. Wilder must first get past his rematch in November against Luis Ortiz."
Deontay Wilder, I want you next bum!" Fury said. "All preparation is good. This is me fourth fight back [from a three-year layoff due to mental health and substance abuse issues] and got me in good preparation for the big boy, the ole 'Bronze Bomber,' the big dosser."
CBS Sports was with you for every punch from the bout in Las Vegas with our updating scorecard and live updates below. If you are having trouble viewing the results or want to refresh the scorecard, please click here.
Fury vs. Wallin scorecard, live coverage
| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fury | 9 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 117 |
Wallin | 10 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 111 |
Fury vs. Wallin card, results
Tyson Fury def. Otto Wallin via unanimous decision (116-112, 117-111, 118-110)
Emanuel Navarrete (c) def. Juan Miguel Elorde via fourth-round TKO
Jose Zepeda def. Jose Pedraza via unanimous decision (97-93, 97-93, 97-93)
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