Betting on boxing is one of the most popular pastimes for sports punters who love getting closer to the action. Being able to bet on boxing gives you the chance to follow your favourite fighters throughout their career, from the first bell until the last.

Here at Leo Vegas, we know how seriously our boxing betting community takes this beloved sport. That’s why we offer a huge range of boxing betting odds & markets, covering fights from all over the world, in our sportsbook.

Get the latest boxing odds, best prices and live markets when you bet with Leo Vegas today! Access our fight specials, trigger promos and back your favourite fighters when it matters most.

How to bet on boxing

If you’re new to boxing betting then don’t worry – placing a wager is very straightforward. First, you need to sign up to Leo Vegas and create a profile, or simply log into your existing account. Check you’ve charged your account and then browse the various boxing odds available here. When you find a fight and outcome that you like the look of, simply click on the odds, enter your stake in the bet slip and place your bet.

The beauty of boxing betting is that there’s a wager for everyone, and upsets can occur all the time. This means punters who wager on the underdog can stand to win mega payouts if their fighter delivers a sucker punch against the favourite.

Profits from all winning boxing bets are automatically credited to your account, so you can either withdraw your winnings or use them to wager on the next contest!

How boxing betting odds work

Boxing betting odds work exactly the same as in other sports like football, tennis or cricket. The odds reflect how much profit you will make off a wager, as well as the likelihood of your bet winning. So, the higher the odds, the less chance of you winning your bet, but the bigger potential profits.

Boxing odds generally focus on who will win contests, and how a fighter might win. The odds are in constant flux and can rise and fall before big fights. What’s more, you can also bet in-play on the biggest bouts and access accurate live odds at your fingertips.

Best boxing betting markets

There is a wide range of boxing betting markets that offer maximum opportunities for punters to place wagers on specific outcomes. The best boxing betting markets include fight winner, total rounds and whether the contest will go the distance.

If you’re seeking greater odds then round betting is usually the place to look. Here, you can wager on which round the fight will be stopped in, which is not easy to predict. But because of the nature of the wager, the odds are often much higher.

It’s also possible to bet on events that take place within a fight. For example, betting on whether a boxer will be knocked down, to come back from a knockdown and win, or for both fighters to hit the canvas.

It’s worth remembering that boxing terminology is sometimes a little tricky. Here’s a list of boxing phrases you might not be aware of:

KO – The abbreviation for a knockout, where a boxer loses if they cannot get back up off the canvas within the referee’s count to ten

TKO – If a boxer is injured or unable to continue fighting then they lose by technical knockout

Decision – If the fight ‘goes the distance’ then it is decided on the scorecards of three judges

Below the belt – A punch lands below the waistband of the opponent, which is illegal in boxing

Undercard – The fights before the main event, usually featuring lesser fighters. You can also bet on undercard boxing at Leo Vegas

Technical decision betting

Technical decisions in boxing are fairly rare but can occur. A technical decision is when the referee judges the fight must stop because of a headbutt. This is usually accidental but often leaves the victim of the headbutt with a cut above the eye, or perhaps a broken nose or jaw. The referee can therefore choose to end the fight.

Outright Bets

Outright bets, also known as 'Bout Bets' in the boxing world. These are bets which look at who will win a fight and is the simplest wager that can be placed for any sport.

In these bets, players will be wagering on the fighters that they believe will win the fight, this is similar to bets that you would find for the UFC.

Handicap betting in boxing

These bets are incredibly rare in boxing but they do exist, so if you see a Handicap market in boxing, don't be surprised. You'll most likely find these markets in amateur fights where a knockout is highly unlikely and you'll find the fight likely ends on points. For example, if you're betting on a fight in the Olympics where there are five rounds, you could be on an Olympic boxer to win by three or more rounds.

You'll only find these bets in boxing matches where there is an overwhelming favourite against a mediocre opponent, the favourite is expected to dominate the ring, land more punches and control the fight.

Round Bets

This is one of the most common boxing bets in the world as wagers are placed on the individual rounds where the fight win finish. More common in heavyweight fights featuring the likes of Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, these are the best bets for boxing odds as you can find odds between 5/1 - 13/1 at the start of the bout. First of all, you need to have a good idea of who is winning the fight and conduct the research to understand when the fight is likely to end, which is something we recommend all beginners doing before they place their first bet.

Method of Victory Bets

There are a wide number of ways that a fight can end in professional boxing. The most common outcome is TKO/KO which is where a fighter is unable to continue and the fight is stopped in a particular round. The second most common method of victory is via a decision where three judges will determine the winner and loser based on the rounds that came before. During a fight, the total number of punches will be taken into consideration but this is more determined on who controlled the fight, which is easier to predict later in the fight.

Boxing Betting Shorthand Terminology

Knowing your terminology in online betting, check out our shorthand boxing betting guide below.

• KD - Shorthand term for a 'knockout'
• TKO - Shorthand term for a 'technical knockout'
• DQ - Shorthand term for a 'disqualification'
• UD - Shorthand term for a 'Unanimous Decision'
• SD - Shorthand term for a 'Split Decision'
• MD - Shorthand term for a 'Majority Decision'
• TD - Shorthand term for a 'Technical Decision'
• KD - Shorthand term meaning a boxer has been 'knocked down'
• GTD - Shorthand term meaning the fight has 'Gone the Distance'

Boxing Betting Tips: Weight Classes

In regards to boxing betting, weight classes are one of the most overlooked elements of betting, the outright winner isn't typically impacted it has a large impact on how a fight will go. For example, a fight in the Heavyweight division is going to be dramatically different to what we would see in the Cruiserweight division. We'll tend to see more knockouts in fights in heavyweight fights with the likes of Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder. Of course, to back up our boxing predictions, we need to see the stats, so below you can find the stats from the top five boxers in each weight class and the percentage of knockout victories and losses in comparison to the number of decision victories.

Boxing Betting Tips: Heavyweight

Below, we have five of the best heavyweight boxers in the world and five of the most popular boxers for online betting due to the popularity of boxing betting at the Heavyweight class. In order to find the best tips for knockouts, we've calculated the percentage rate of knockouts in heavyweight fights using these five top contenders.

• Tyson Fury - 23 KO's, 9 decisions = 71.8% knockout rate
• Oleksandr Usyk - 13 KO's, 7 decisions = 65% knockout rate
• Deontay Wilder - 44 KO's, 2 decisions = 95.65% knockout rate
• Anthony Joshua - 23 KO's, 4 decisions = 85.18% knockout rate
• Joe Joyce - 14 KO's, 1 decision = 93.33% knockout rate

Average KO Rate: 83.57%

Boxing Betting Tips: Cruiserweight

Due to the likes of Wrestling and MMA Cruiserweight has a reputation for being a much smaller, quicker style of competition. However, boxing is different to those sports, in the Cruiserweight division, we see a large number of knockouts despite expectations being that both fighters would hold out for a points victory, find the top five boxing Cruiserweights below and their knockout rates.

• Jai Opetaia - 17 KO's, 5 decisions = 77.27%
• Lawrence Okolie - 14 KO's, 4 decisions = 77.77%
• Mairis Briedis - 20 KO's, 10 decisions = 66.66%
• Yuniel Dorticos - 24 KO's, 3 decisions = 88.88%
• Ilunga Makabu - 27 KO's, 4 decisions = 87.09%

Average KO Rate: 79.68%

Boxing Betting Tips: Light Heavyweight

Similar to the heavyweight division above, we've crunched the numbers for the top five light heavyweights and provided the knockout percentage for the weight class based on the top five contenders.

• Dmitry Bivol - 11 KO's, 9 decisions = 55%
• Artur Beterbiev - 18 KO's, 0 decisions = 100%
• Joe Smith Jr - 24 KO's, 8 decisions = 75%
• Gilberto Ramirez - 30 KO's, 14 decisions = 68.18%
• Callum Smith - 21 KO's, 9 decisions = 70%

Average KO Rate: 72.22%

Boxing Betting Tips: Super Middleweight

When it comes to Super Middleweight, there are a number of impressive names on the list of contenders. However, does their knockout rate stack up with those above them or will Super Middleweight see another fall in knockout rates?

• Canelo Álvarez - 39 KO's, 21 decisions = 65%
• David Benavidez - 22 KO's, 3 decisions = 88%
• Caleb Plant - 14 KO's, 9 decisions = 60.8%
• Billy Joe Saunders - 15 KO's, 16 decisions = 48.3%
• Anthony Dirrell - 27 KO's, 12 decisions = 69.2%

Average KO Rate: 65.73%

Boxing Betting Tips: Light Middleweight

At Light Middleweight, we see a lot of competitors go on long winning streaks when they fight for the decision victory, a lot of Light Middleweights have the power to cause serious damage to an opponent but also the speed and technique to control any fight. So, you'll likely find at Light Middleweight, figures even themselves out quite often as knockout rates are more fighter dependant.

• Jermell Charlo - 19 KO's, 18 decisions = 51.3%
• Brian Castano - 13 KO's, 4 decisions = 76.4%
• Sebastian Fundora - 13 KO's, 8 decisions = 61.9%
• Jarrett Hurd - 16 KO's, 10 decisions = 61.5%
• Erislandy Lara - 17 KO's,18 decisions = 48.5%

Average KO Rate: 57.35%

Boxing Betting Tips: Middleweight

In theory, middleweight boxers should be the hardest to judge as they vary so much between boxer, some will be as quick as cruiserweights and battle to a decision victory while others can hit as hard as a heavyweight and win in a specific round with ease. Here are the top five Middleweight boxers and their knockout rate.

• Gennady Golovkin - 37 KO's, 7 decisions = 84.09%
• Jermall Charlo - 22 KO's, 10 decisions = 68.75%
• Demetrius Andrade - 19 KO's, 12 decisions = 61.29%
• Jaime Manguia - 32 KO's, 8 decisions = 80%
• Janibek Alimkhanuly - 8 KO's, 4 decisions = 66.66%

Average KO Rate: 74.21%

Boxing Betting Tips: Light Welterweight

Light Welterweight has seen some fantastic knockout artists in recent years, with particularly American boxers coming out the blocks and getting some beautiful knockout victories in recent years. On the other hand, we've more recently seen better technical boxing from the boxers from the United Kingdom, who will land a knockout if the opportunity arises but are more than comfortable going the distance and winning via points.

• Josh Taylor - 13 KO's, 6 decisions = 68.42%
• Regis Prograis - 23 KO's, 5 decisions = 82.14%
• Jose Ramirez - 17 KO's, 11 decisions = 60.71%
• Jose Zepeda - 28 KO's, 9 decisions = 70.67%
• Jack Catterall - 13 KO's, 14 decisions = 48.14%

Average KO Rate: 65.11%

Boxing Betting Tips: Lightweight

Lightweight is commonly known for decision finishes, despite most boxers having over 50% knockout finishes in their career, on the bigger stage, the Lightweight boxers with the best chins are incredibly difficult to knockout, which is why a large number of championship fights have gone the distance, in recent years, the likes of Gervonta Davis and Ryan Garcia have moved away from that philosophy and finish the vast majority of their fights via knockout.

• Devin Haney - 15 KO's, 14 decisions = 51.7%
• Vasiliy Lomachenko - 11 KO's, 8 decisions = 57.89%
• Gervonta Davis - 25 KO's, 2 decisions = 92.59%
• Ryan Garcia - 19 KO's, 4 decisions = 82.60%
• Isaac Cruz - 17 KO's, 9 decisions = 65.38%

Average KO Rate: 68.90%

Boxing Betting Tips: Super Featherweight

The belief is, the further down the weight classes you go, the less knockout victories you see, which when looking at the big picture is true but Super Featherweight is a prime example of how boxers can be overlooked. Robson Conceicao is one of the only boxers at this weight class with more decision victories than knockouts, almost every other fighter has a higher knockout rate than the decision rate.

• Oscar Valdez - 23 KO's, 8 decisions = 74.19%
• Hector Garcia - 10 KO's, 6 decisions = 62.5%
• Shavkat Rakhimov - 13 KO's, 4 decisions = 76.47%
• Joe Cordina - 9 KO's, 6 decisions = 60%
• Robson Conceicao - 8 KO's, 11 decisions = 42.1%

Average KO Rate: 64.28%

Boxing Betting Tips: Featherweight

Featherweight boxing is where we start to see the statistics for knockouts drop, Emanuel Navarrete has done a fantastic job of finishing fights but underneath him, the number of knockout victories is scarce compared to other weight classes. It is in this weight class that we actually see our first fighter with less than a 40% knockout rate with Josh Warrington only finishing the fight in 25% of his bouts.

• Emanuel Navarrete - 30 KO's, 7 decisions = 81%
• Rey Vargas - 22 KO's, 14 decisions = 61.11%
• Mark Magsayo - 8 KO's, 9 decisions = 47.05%
• Mauricio Lara - 19 KO's, 9 decisions = 67.85%
• Josh Warrington - 9 KO's, 24 decisions = 25.71%

Average KO Rate: 58.27%

Boxing Betting Tips: Super Bantamweight

Super Bantamweight continues where Featherweight left off, newer fighters are showing a strength and a knack to get knockouts but traditionally, we see Bantamweight as a haven for decision victories, as seen below.

• Stephen Fulton - 8 KO's, 13 decisions = 38.09%
• Murodjon Akhmadaliev - 8 KO's, 3 decisions = 72.72%
• Daniel Roman - 10 KO's, 24 decisions = 29.41%
• Brandon Figueroa - 18 KO's, 7 decisions = 72%
• Angelo Leo - 9 KO's, 13 decisions = 42.85%

Average KO Rate: 46.90%

Boxing Betting Tips: Bantamweight

For some reason, the difference between Bantamweight and Super Bantamweight is huge when it comes to knockout victories, the likes of Naoya Inoue and Jason Moloney have been able to dominate their opponents in excentric style but even across the average in the weight class, numbers are higher. Is the quality gap between fighters wider? Or is it the fact that fighters still have a incredible punching power and less sturdy chins and bodies?

• Naoya Inoue - 20 KO's, 3 decisions = 86.95%
• John Riel Casimero - 22 KO's, 13 decisions = 62.8%
• Jason Moloney - 20 KO's, 7 decisions = 74%
• Nonito Donaire - 30 KO's, 19 decisions = 61.22%
• Rau'shee Warren - 5 KO's, 19 decisions = 20.83%

Boxing Betting Tips: Super Flyweight

Super Flyweight is a weight class where the number of knockouts very much depends on the fighter, there are a number of fighters in this weight class who fight for the decision but in recent history, power punchers have been able to outclass them and get the victory, climbing to the top of the rankings, a power shift at Super Flyweight?

• Juan Francisco Estrada - 28 KO's, 18 decisions = 60.86%
• Roman Gonzalez - 42 KO's, 12 decisions = 77.77%
• Kazuto Ioka - 15 KO's, 16 decisions = 48.38%
• Jesse Rodriguez - 11 KO's, 5 decisions = 68.75%
• Fernando Martinez - 8 KO's, 6 decisions = 57.14%

Boxing Betting Tips: Flyweight

Flyweight in it's history has been one of the most consistent weight classes with most boxers landing between 60% and 70% knockout rates in their fights, one boxer who has recently defied this is Sunny Edwards, who almost always comes out on top in a decision victory. However, in most fights, Flyweight fighters look for the KO.

• Junto Nakatani - 18 KO's, 5 decisions = 78.2%
• Julio Cesar Martinez - 14 KO's, 8 decisions = 63.63%
• Sunny Edwards - 4 KO's, 14 decisions = 22.22%
• Artem Dalakian - 15 KO's, 6 decisions = 71.42%
• Ricardo Rafael Sandoval - 15 KO's, 7 decisions = 68.14%

Boxing Betting Tips: Best Weight Class for Knockouts

So, as we can see from our study, if you're looking for predictions to land that special KO punch, you'll look at the Heavyweight, Cruiserweight and Middleweight divisions, while if you're looking to back a decision victory, you'll look at Super Bantamweight as it is the only division where a decision is more common than a knockout but you'll also look at Featherweight and Super Flyweight.

So, what this proves is that the gap in KO's between Heavyweight boxing and other weight classes does exist but the belief that the lower weight classes aren't good for knockout boxing betting is indeed a myth!

Biggest boxing fights of 2022

Champion boxers are expected to regularly put their titles on the line, which means sports betting fans are treated to high-profile fights every year. In 2022 the heavyweight titles are expected to change hands, while there are plenty of other movements further down the weight divisions.

Tyson Fury put his WBC heavyweight title on the line against Dillian Whyte in April and will likely seek a bout with Anthony Joshua or Oleksandr Usyk after that, despite rumours of his retirement. Elsewhere, super-middleweight king, Canelo Alvarez will step up to light heavyweight and face Russia's Dmitry Bivol as he seeks to claim even more titles, while Gennady Golovkin will have to defend his WBA and IBF middleweight straps at some point.

Jermell Charlo defends his WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, and The Ring light middleweight titles against Argentina’s Brian Castaño in May, with Charlo just one belt away from completing the sweep. And George Kambosos Jr. seeks to unify the lightweight division when he clashes with Devin Haney in Melbourne this June.

In the women’s ranks, Savannah Marshall and Claressa Shields are expected to clash in a middleweight unification rumble later in 2022. Katie Taylor remains the undisputed lightweight queen and defends her belts against Amanda Serrano in New York this April.