Alvarez vs. Chavez Fight Adds Excitement to Busy Sports Betting Weekend

Posted on: May 5, 2017, 01:00h. 

Last updated on: May 5, 2017, 10:10h.

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Expertise: Commercial Gaming.

Alvarez vs. Chavez, the Kentucky Derby, and the NBA Playoffs will make finding a seat at a Las Vegas sportsbook this weekend rather difficult.

The first weekend in May is always a busy time for oddsmakers after the typically slow month of April, but in 2017, it’s off to an even busier start. While the Derby and NBA Playoffs are a constant that will always fill plenty of betting slips, this Cinco de Mayo weekend there’s added excitement thanks to Canelo Alvarez and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

With a combined record of 98-3, the two boxers are consistently ranked among Mexico’s greatest of all time. The Saturday night bout will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas in front of a sold-out crowd of 20,048.

Bettors are lining up to take odds on the fight. Alvarez is the favorite at the Nevada sportsbooks and online.

Casinos have Alvarez at around -650 to win, with Chavez at +400. Online books provide a slightly better deal for Alvarez takers, as Bovada has Canelo at -600.

HBO will pay-per-view the fight to customers for $69.95. The clash is being put on by Golden Boy Promotions, former Mexican boxing great Oscar De La Hoya’s company.

Them Fighting Words

Boxing fans should get their money’s worth from the Alvarez vs. Chavez fight, as they are certainly no fans of one another. There’s plenty of bad blood between the two, and they’ve decided to settle it inside the ring.

“I’ve lived many big moments in my life, but this is one of the biggest moments and fights,” Chavez’s father, former world champion Julio Cesar Chavez Sr., said this week. “This fight is consuming Mexico.”

Alvarez and Chavez generated headlines in 2016 when they reportedly reached a handshake deal to fight in a “winner-take-all” match. However, when the contract was formally agreed upon, their managers made sure both parties would walk away with millions of dollars. “My dad and Canelo stopped the bet,” Chavez Jr. explained. “I don’t think Alvarez can afford to lose that money.”

The purse is $7 million, and both Alvarez and Chavez will take a cut of the PPV revenue.

Fight Actually Happening

Alvarez’ lone loss came at the hands of Floyd Mayweather, who is currently considering coming out of retirement for a third time in order to take on UFC champ Conor McGregor.

There’s already a sizable amount of betting action on the hyped clash, despite the two sides not having a contract signed.

Oddsmakers might be getting tired of the theorized fights that never come to reality.

Earlier this year, online books take bets on a proposed boxing match between rappers Chris Brown and Soulja Boy. Mayweather was behind that headline-maker as well, and was reportedly training Soulja Boy.

Mike Tyson was rumored to be working with Brown, but alas, the two musicians’ hatred for one another never came to blows.