Betting and boxing have gone together for a good many years, and have enjoyed a symbiotic relationship with the heavy mix of glamour, intrigue and brutality. In fact, during the early years of the 1970s, betting on boxing was a more popular gamblers tipple than betting on the NFL. This, however, was spoiled by more and more allegations of fixed fights, and quite appalling judging decisions seemed to underscore this suspicion, which served to switch many of the gamblers away from betting on the sport. In time, though, boxing has largely regained its status and glamour; boxing seems to once again have the confidence of the gambling public.

In terms of placing your bet, boxing utilizes the money line system, which is reasonably easy to follow. The gambler needs to digest the odds that appear next to the name of the boxer, and a hypothetical line and odds for a bout might read Floyd Mayweather-200 Manny Pacquiao+150 Draw +2000. In such a line and odds, those punters that place a bet on Floyd Mayweather to win must gamble $200 in order to get a $100 return and those betting on Manny Pacquiao must wager $100 in order to win $150. For those that wish to predict and wager that the bout will be drawn, they must bet $100 in order to get a $2,000 return. In relation to boxing bets, it is a simple, straightforward slugfest – much like the contest itself: in order for you to win the bet, your fighter must win. If he loses, you lose. Simple as that. In the event that the bout is declared drawn, all bets on each fighter are considered to have lost, and this makes bookmakers – along with all those punters who bet on a drawn fight – a good deal wealthier and happier.

A certain number of boxing matches can be a little one-sided, and as a result, bookmakers can devise what are called ‘proposition bets’ for major fights. Perhaps, the most popular format is the over/under bet wagered on the duration of the fight. This works by the punter betting on either over or under a certain number of rounds taking place in the fight. A typical line may be over 10 full rounds, 140, under 10 full rounds, 120. If your bet is for the fight to last the full ten rounds, your bet is safe in the event that both fighters make it to the end of the fight. If your bet is for under the ten full rounds, you will need the fight to be stopped before the bell ends the final (10th) round. You can also bet on which of the fighters will win by either knockout or by stoppage.

In terms of your research for betting, bettors must analyze factors about the boxers such as their height and weight, reach, age, the quality of their previous opposition, number of knockouts and their trainers and corner-men. As always, as much research as possible will give you a critical edge when it comes to weighing up what kind of bet to place and whom to bet on.