As we head towards a dip in action over the summer, fight fans can reflect on a rollercoaster season. We’ve enjoyed some colossal bouts, incredible wins, and more than the odd shock result. But still, there’s plenty more to come in the months ahead. If you love the noble art, there’s every reason to be excited about the new season: more big fights, controversy, and pushing and shoving at the scales.
There’s a feeling in the prizefighting industry on both sides of the Atlantic that promoters, managers, coaches, and fighters are eager to make up for the time lost during the pandemic. They want to make the big fights happen, with the best taking on the best for major titles.
Fans want to see Tyson Fury face Oleksandr Usyk or Errol Spence Jr v Terrance Crawford. The former is a work in progress, and the latter is already signed and sealed. You can make predictions on any of this year’s fights at boxing and UFC betting sites. But how do you pick a winner and boost your bank balance while enjoying the show? We’ll explain how in this article.
Joining us is former professional boxer and current digital journalist Frankie Monkhouse who explains the simple steps to beating the bookies. He tells readers the gems worth finding and the pitfalls best avoided. By the end of this article, we want to ensure readers have a strong understanding of making reliable predictions on boxing.
Be careful who you trust
The internet is awash with tipsters and betting experts. But for every one supposed gambling shark, there are ten boxing judges. You know the type. Casual fight fans with a Wi-Fi connection and time to spare. They’re easy to spot as they told anyone who would listen, “Yeah, Mayweather’s a good boxer, but McGregor needs to land just one shot.”
Any boxing fan worth their salt wouldn’t take advice from these people on anything about our beautiful sport, so why take betting predictions from them? You know the game and have your mind. In short, be careful who you trust, and if you do follow a betting tipster on any sport, make sure they’re as good as they claim.
There are some excellent sportsbook tipsters online and some knowledgeable boxing tipsters. The quickest way to check if they are worth following is to view their profit and loss column for the last three to five years. If they aren’t profitable, save your time. If there’s no profit/loss, you’ll instantly know you’re dealing with a spoofer.
Sometimes it’s better to stick with your views and predictions. If that’s your approach, follow your first instinct. What was your snap judgment when the fight was announced? That’s your bet before the media hype begins.
Get the best deals
The leading online sportsbooks know boxing’s worth and aim to encourage a steady stream of new bettors. Gambling apps offer all new players a welcome bonus free bet. If you’re betting on boxing, you must find a sportsbook with a generous new customer player bonus. Register an account, make your first deposit, and you’ll bank a welcome bonus.
When you begin betting on boxing, every wager must be at the best odds possible. Many sportsbooks offer different odds on the same bets, but some are much better than the competition. When you’ve found your bet, check a respected gambling odds comparison app to find the best deals. The top odds will be in bold, making it easier to find. The app with the highest offer is the one you should bet with every time.
Don’t skip the groundwork
Research is vital to any success you have when betting on boxing. The more you know about the fighters involved, the greater your chances of predicting the winner.
Boxing betting is notorious for having little value in the odds, but that’s only true if you don’t look past the most prominent market. Modern boxing betting has dozens of options, including fight winner, total rounds, method of victory, and more. There’s more than one way to beat the bookies, and studying the stats will lead you to a bet.
I always use Wladimir Klitschko as an excellent example of how to find value when betting on boxing. The former heavyweight champion was always a short price to win and almost as tight to win by KO/TKO. But when you studied the form, you noticed that he was taking his time and scoring late stoppages towards the middle and end of his career.
Armed with that information, you’d bet on the fight lasting more than seven rounds or Klitschko winning by KO/TKO in rounds 7-12.
Out-smarting the traders is easy
Another great way to use your boxing knowledge to target a profit is by taking advantage of in-play or live betting. When a fight begins, the pre-bout odds become in-play betting odds, and a live trader monitors the market. They’ll update the odds to reflect the flow of the fight, and you can pounce on any value.
I worked on the trading floor of one of the biggest names in betting during the early days of my professional boxing career and learned an interesting fact I’ll now share. There’s no such thing as a boxing trader or live boxing trader. It’s tennis, NFL, or some other sports trader with nothing to do on a Saturday night.
Now you have that information; I’ll ask you a question. Who knows more about the art of boxing and how to follow a fight, you or some guy in a Pittsburgh Steelers snapback? Watch the contest closely and hammer any mistakes made by the traders.
Know when to throw in the towel
Quit while you’re ahead, or know when you’re beat. Bookies offer a feature that allows you to cash out your bets at the click of a button. A cash-out value will be added to your bet slip when you gamble on boxing.
It’ll equal your stake but rise and fall depending on how well your bet performs. If things are going well, cash out for a profit before the end, and if you’ve made a poor selection, try to cash out and get some of your stake back.