What can you bet on during a boxing match besides the winner?
Betting and boxing have a long history together. Betting has been entwined with boxing culture since its earliest days. During periods when betting on sports was outlawed, betting on boxing simply went underground. So, many books and movies that feature boxing include a betting element.
Media like Dashiell Hammett’s book Red Harvest (1929) and the film Ocean’s 11 (2001), show the extremes of the boxing world, from a seedy underground ring to the glitz and glam of a big fight night in Las Vegas. And both put betting right in the ring with the fighters.
Most examples of boxing betting in books and films, however, focus solely on betting on the outcome of a bout. While betting on who will win is the most popular type of bet in every sport, there are other things that you can bet on.
This article will cover the basics of sports betting for any new bettors or for experienced bettors who would like a little refresher. Then, we’ll cover the main types of bets that you can place during a boxing match.
How to Bet on Boxing
Some inexperienced bettors assume that all sportsbooks are basically the same and that it doesn’t matter where you place your bets. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Choosing the right sportsbook is an important part of the betting process.
A betting guide is a great way to find the perfect sportsbook for you. The two main factors that you need to consider are if it offers odds on all the fights you want to bet on and if the odds are good for the bets you want to make.
You should also consider what kind of bonuses each sportsbook offers. Deposit matching, no deposit first bets, and risk-free bets can all make your betting budget stretch a lot further. While it shouldn’t necessarily be your first consideration, a good bonus can help you select the best sportsbook.
Thanks to online betting, the actual betting process has become streamlined and easy. The days of having to go to a betting shop or casino to place a bet are mostly over, which has made the betting process less intimidating for people who weren’t entirely familiar with all the necessary jargon.
To bet online, simply create an account with your preferred sportsbook and make an initial deposit. Most online sportsbooks accept a wide range of payment methods, including credit/debit cards, banking apps, digital wallets, and payment apps like PayPal.
Once you’ve got money in your account, you’re ready to go. Navigate to the page with the boxing odds and choose the bet you’d like to place and the amount you want to wager. Now it’s time to watch the fight and see what happens.
Bets You Can Place on Boxing
Moneyline bets
Moneyline bets, sometimes known as single-event bets, are the most basic type of sports bets and most people are familiar with them. This is where you bet on who will win the fight. This is the easiest type of bet to find odds for since it is the most common.
Parlay bets
You can spice up moneyline betting by turning your single-event bets into parlays. A parlay bet is made up of at least 3 single-event bets. For the parlay bet to pay out, each of the bets that make it up also has to pay out.
With boxing, the best way to do a parlay bet is to bet the entire fight card. Choose a winner for each fight on the card and if every fighter you’ve picked wins their fight, your parlay bet will pay out.
Parlay bets tend to have much higher payouts than regular moneyline bets. This is because they are very difficult to win. If a single fight during the night doesn’t go your way, then your entire bet is lost. For bettors who love the thrill of an added risk that keeps intensifying, parlay bets are a good option.
Over/under round betting
Over/under bets are ideal if you have a talent for judging how long a fight will last. With an over/under round bet, the bookmaker will set the number of rounds that they expect the fight will last. You then choose if you think it will go more rounds (over) or fewer rounds (under).
Let’s use the Oleksander Usyk and Anthony Joshua fight last week as an example. If there was a sportsbook offering over/under odds for the fight to last 6 rounds, how would you have bet?
After doing your research, you’d know that both fighters are in the top 5 pound for pound and that in their last fight, they went all 12 rounds and it ended with a unanimous decision instead of a KO. The smart money, then, would be an over bet.
If you really enjoy over/under betting, you can also find over/under bets on how long each round will last.
Prop betting
Prop betting is the most creative type of betting. Prop bets are on things that will happen during a fight, rather than on the outcome. The most popular boxing prop bets are on which round the fight will end, how it will end (unanimous decision, KO, etc.) and if there be any point deductions.
Some prop bets, however, are a bit more unique. Some people like to bet on which fighter will bleed first. With how dramatic some fighters’ entrance outfits will be, what kind of robe will be worn or what color shorts a more fashion forward fighter will be wearing becoming less serious, and more fun, prop bets.