Floyd Mayweather Vs. Manny Pacquiao Clash in 2015 Anticipated By Las Vegas Sportsbook; American 3-to-1 Favourite Against Filipino
Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao have yet to sign on the dotted lines for a probable super fight in 2015 but boxing fans can already bet on either boxer as Las Vegas sports books have installed the undefeated American fighter as the 3-to-1 favourite against the Filipino pugilist.
“It’s not something that we would normally do if it’s just a projected fight,” Scott Ghertner, who is a spokesman for the MGM Grand, said via ringtv.com. “If we do something like that the fight would have to take place in a certain amount of time.”
According to the article, the betting odds and lines are already posted at the Mandalay Bay and MGM Race and Sports Books, a popular gambling outfit that caters to casino, race and sports betting enthusiasts. It also claimed that the move was “unusual” for “a fight that hasn’t been confirmed”.
Already ripe with hype and speculation, the probable Mayweather vs. Pacquiao super fight is expected to draw large numbers both from gate attendance and pay-per-view (PPV) sales. It follows that it will be heavily bet on especially if the bout, pegged by many as one of the most anticipated in boxing’s history, is finalised.
Manny Pacquiao (56-5-2, 38 knockouts) is set to face another undefeated American in Chris Algieri (20-0-0, 8 knockouts) on Nov. 22, 2014 in Macau while Floyd Mayweather Jr. (47-0-0, 26 knockouts) is off a 12-round unanimous decision victory over Marcos Maidana last Sept. 14, 2014.
Various reports have stated that the networks holding the rights for both fighters— Pacquiao under HBO Sports and Mayweather under Showtime/CBS— have had initial talks although there were no formal announcements regarding that development. Pacquiao and Mayweather camps have also been involved in throwing verbal jobs against each other but neither has shown inclination of formal discussions between the two.
There was the pronouncement from Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s father, Floyd Sr. in late September that his son will face Pacquiao in 2015 only to be rebutted by his own son that there is no done deal between both camps. Mayweather Jr. even threatened Mayweather Sr. that he’ll be removed from his son’s inside circles if he continues to run his mouth off on speculating about the fight.
Meanwhile, only one sports book is currently offering the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao betting line. According to oddschecker.com, an online betting website which collects betting odds and numbers from different online sportsbooks, only williamhill.com, an online betting site based in the United Kingdom (UK), offers the wagering line for the fight with a similar 3-to-1 underdog tag on Pacquiao and Mayweather as the favoured boxer.
Unlike what Ghertner claims, online sports books normally offers boxing betting odds even for unconfirmed fights. Over at sportsbet.com.au, the online betting sites already offers betting lines for probable Floyd Mayweather Jr. versus Amir Khan fight with the American also pegged as a 3-to-1 favourite.
The MGM betting line could mean nothing or everything. It does leave a glimmer of hope for the millions of boxing fans anticipating a Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao clash in 2015.
