I managed to chat to a few sports betting fans who had thought the fight might be close, but when a fighter like Khan takes to the ring, win or lose sometimes the fights are short. They went home happy when their boxing bets backing Khan to win at odds of around 1.30 came in so they could collect a nice win.

We arrived at the arena at around 6pm and there was a fight already in the ring when the stewards opened the doors and let the audience in. There was a young fighter called Ritchie Heffron from Liverpool making his professional debut and he won after two one sided rounds after his opponent suffered an arm injury. Other fights followed in quick succession, with James De Gale, Billy-Jo Saunders and Frankie Gavin all earning their next win in their fledgling professional careers. Frankie Gavin had a hard fight, we saw him talking to someone at the back of the floor area and his face showed signs of a tough battle. Alex Arthur lost to a local fighter and that drew a nice cheer from the partisan crowd who cheered Nigel Wright from Crook to victory.

Watching the boxing live comes highly recommended. There were a couple of punch-ups in the crowd behind where we were sitting because some people got a little over excited and had a drink but overall the atmosphere was lively but sensible. We left eager to return again in the future. We even caught a glimpse of David Haye as he entered the arena to watch the action and laughed at a few fans who walked past him and then suddenly realised that the new Heavyweight champion of the world had just passed by and gaped in amazement!

What can boxing betting fans look out for in future fights? Shane Mosley fights Andre Berto for the WBC Welterweight belt and Mosley is favourite at 1.45 to defeat Berto who has odds of 2.75 for the victory. That fight takes place on January 31st 2010 in the USA so watching that fight means staying up late at 3.00am if you are in the UK. Keep an eye on bwin announcing details of their live streaming for those who like in-play betting on boxing fights.

The biggest fight of 2010, and for many years it can be argued, will be the showdown between Floyd Mayweather Jnr and Manny Pacquiao. Manny has enjoyed high profile victories and looked highly impressive during wins over Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto. Sunday March 14th 2010 is the prospective date for this bout although final details are still being ironed out by the respective camps.

Mayweather, because he is undefeated, is 1.67 to win this bout, whilst Pacquiao has odds of 2.25 for the victory. The draw is 19.00. This will be a classic bout for not only the reputations of the fighters but in the contrast of styles. Mayweather is the best defensive boxer in recent years, perhaps of all time, whilst Pacquiao is certainly the most devastating pound for pound puncher currently boxing professionally. Boxing fans are licking their lips at the prospect of this fight. I believe the 2.25 is a good price for Pacquiao as Mayweather has only fought twice in two years, although he keeps himself in excellent physical shape between fights.

It is rumoured that the fight will take place either at the MGM grand or at an American Football stadium where up to 100,000 fans could be in attendance. One not to be missed for any sports betting fan.

Look out for a big year in 2010 for boxing fans and boxing betting fans.

By Malcolm Clarke

Boxing correspondent Mike Costello believes that Floyd Mayweathers defensive ability would present a far more difficult night for Pacquiao than his recent fights, where his opponents favoured a more attacking approach, which proved unsuccessful. Mayweather is fast but from a defensive standpoint very difficult to beat and it would be an intriguing boxing contest. Boxing betting fans will have to wait for a little while for this fight. The respective camps will let demand rise before cashing in on what would be one of the all time great fights in my opinion. I think the odds for this one would be very close, time will tell.

I am going to the post office tomorrow morning to collect my tickets for the Amir Khan versus Dmitriy Salita fight at Newcastle on December 5th. The undercard sees an eliminator between the undefeated Kevin Mitchell and Amir Khan’s sole conqueror Breidis Prescott. Whoever wins this will face Khan if he overcomes Salita and a rematch again Prescott would certainly attract plenty of attention. Both fighters have a lot to contend with before that fight occurs.

The undercard of Amir Khan’s fight is excellent which is great for me because it was unannounced when I ordered my tickets. James De Gale, Frankie Gavin and Billy-Jo Saunders all continue their careers with their next pro fight. All three of these fighters are products of the Amateur 2008 Beijing Olympic squads. At present, they fight on the same cards building their records and learning their trade and so far they all remain undefeated. Frankie Gavin was forced to miss the Olympics after failing to make weight but certainly looks as good as the media said he was and is a useful boxer. He has talked of having a title fight in around one year’s time so it will be excited to see how these three fighters do on December 5th.

Boxing betting fans looking to have a bet on Amir Khan’s fight can back him to win at odds of 1.12 with Salita available at odds of 5.50 from bwin.com. The draw is an unlikely outcome due to the explosive Khan style but those fancying it can back the draw at odds are 34.00. My predictions for this fight are that Khan will be looking to keep things defensively tight and this means an early knock out is unlikely. I think he may stop the fight in rounds five six or seven if he sees an opportunity and the odds for this to occur are currently 11.00, 12.00 and 13.00 respectively. If Khan sets his sights on out-pointing his opponent using good defensive boxing then the odds for Khan to win on points are currently 3.25. This is the tactic the bookmakers are favouring.

Khan has been criticised in the past for a gung-ho approach that saw him knocked out badly by Prescott. His chin is also suspect so employing a defensive approach and using his foot speed and hand speed keeps the fight based on his strengths and this will be the probable tactics his corner wants him to employ. Opponents look to engage Amir in a war knowing he is vulnerable to the big shot. I think once Khan stops engaging and boxes to his strengths he could be a long term world boxing champion in the mould of a Lennox Lewis.

Boxing betting is attractive for sports betting fans at the moment with the sheer quality of the matches on offer.

By Malcolm Clarke