It's hard to remember an undercard fight attracting as much attention as Tyson Fury's meeting with Francesco Pianeta this weekend.

The pair will be playing second fiddle to Carl Frampton's homecoming fight against Luke Jackson in Belfast, yet plenty of boxing fans will be placing the 30-year-old's latest comeback event under even greater scrutiny.

A farcical four round-victory over Sefer Seferi did virtually nothing to convince the watching world that the Gypsy King is truly back to his best.

Indeed, even if he beats Pianeta just as comfortably, there will be eyebrows raised. The former European champion is five stone lighter and four inches shorter than Fury.

Much more intriguing is the prospect of what comes next - namely, Deontay Wilder. According to widespread reports, a deal is all but signed for the two heavyweights to face each other in the near future.

Speaking to the media ahead of the Pianeta fight, Fury repeatedly chipped in with a few statistics. Firstly, he pointed out he has knocked out every southpaw he has faced, which doesn't bode well for his Italian opponent.

Another of his less flattering facts is that 98% of returning lineal champions were unsuccessful in their world title challenges.

And while he insisted that he is taking Pianeta very seriously and cannot start thinking about belts just yet, he was inevitably asked about Wilder.

It's Wilder's challenge - not the other way round 

"He [Pianeta] knows if he wins this fight he could go on to fight Wilder instead of me," Fury said.

With one reporter noting that he'll get the chance to fight the Bronze Bomber as long as he doesn't slip up on Saturday, he added:

"I'll correct you there, if I come through this, Wilder has a chance to fight me for the lineal championship.

"Let's face it, he's never really fought anybody, he's had 40 fights and it is what it is.

"But I'm not here to talk about Wilder. Wilder may as well be a billion years in the future.

"In my mind, I think I'm the greatest heavyweight that's ever been born so I should handle Pianeta and whoever else, Deontay Wilder, Anthony Joshua, all the bums out there. To me, they're only bums anyway."

Until Fury and Wilder have officially put pen to paper, some will be sceptical - after all it looked a dead cert that the American would be fighting Joshua and that never materialised.

Fury's unpredictable career also complicates matters, which he admits makes it difficult to know what his plans are for the future.

"One minute I want to have 35 title defences, the next I just want to smash Wilder's face in," he joked.

It is looking increasingly realistic, however, that this fight is going to go ahead as soon as Pianeta is out of the way.

Who would win - Fury or Wilder? Have your say in the comments.