Speculative odds on the Pacquiao-De La Hoya show a close fight

Doubts and reservations don’t usually stop the oddsmakers from posting early betting lines on high-profile sports events. However, this is not the case with the De La Hoya-Pacquiao fight and apparently no information will be released until the promoters confirm the fight programmed for December, 2008. So far not a single Las Vegas sportsbook or even online sportsbooks have released any possible odds on the De La Hoya-Pacquiao fight, creating a highly speculative atmosphere among sportsbetting fans and gamblers.

The lack of such a line have taken many boxing fans and sportsbetting experts to speculate and predict who’s going to be the favorite in a fight that will feature two of the most prominent figures in boxing nowadays.  Boxing and betting insiders believe the opening Las Vegas odds would list De La Hoya at around 2-1 favorite to win. According to their predictions, De La Hoya would probably be first listed at about -185 while Pacquiao will jump on the board listed at +165.

These odds reflect that most experts and oddmakers are expecting a close match and that tere are no real worries regarding the weight differences, experience, professional records and style that both fighters exhibit. De La Hoya has fought and won most of his fights in the 160 pounds middleweight division, while Pacquiao has fought most of his pro fights in the 106-pound super featherweight division, jumping to the 135 pounds lightweight division this same year.

For most experts, the De La Hoya vs. Pacquiao match, far from being an unbalanced fight, would actually be one of the most evenly balanced boxing matches of the year if you compare it to other odds on fights taking place in the next months. For example, Juan Manuel Marquez is 3-1 favorite against Joel Casamayor on September 13^th, Shane Mosley is an 8-1 favorite against Ricardo Mayorga on September 27^th in Los Angeles; Kelly Pavlik is about a 4-1 favorite against Bernard Hopkins on October 18^th in Atlantic City and Ricky Hatton is a 5-2 favorite against Paulie Malignaggi on November 22^nd at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

The biggest obstacle right now is setting an agreement on a weight limit and how the purse will be divided. If both fighters agree on the terms then the fight would have to take place in the welterweight division simply because De La Hoya can’t get under the147 pounds mark. But probably the most important impediment is how the purse will be divided; Pacquiao wants as much as 40% of the proceeds but ended up lowering the offer to 30%, according to a Philippine newspaper.

Now, only time will tell if these two boxing giants will face each other on the ring, in the meantime all we can do is rub our hands and wait until the promoters officially announce the fight, which will have to happen within the next month.