On Saturday, you can catch an exhilarating boxing matchup between Anthony Joshua and Kubrat Pulev that brings plenty of online betting opportunities. In this upcoming heavyweight bout, there will be lots on the table between the defending unified WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO world champion Joshua, as his IBF challenger Pulev will be attempting to take all of his heavyweight world titles.
- Date: Dec. 12, 8 p.m. ET
- Location: London, England
- Arena: O2 Arena
- Watch: DAZN
Main Event Breakdown
The champion, Joshua (23-1), returns, looking for a way to close out 2020 strong. With 21 knockouts in his 23 wins, he has been impressive, to say the least.
Which version of Joshua will be up for the challenge? He has been known to be a heavy punching knockout artist that dismantled nearly everyone until Andy Ruiz Jr. showed up in their initial encounter. Joshua has also in the past trained to be leaner, faster, and more technically sound. However, by recent training videos, he appears to have put on size and is looking like his normal knockout machine self.
Pulev (28-1) is a remarkably handy fighter, with 14 knockouts on his resume. “Tough as nails” would be an excellent way to describe the Bulgarian native. The only defeat on his resume was with Wladimir Klitschko, but that was six years ago. However, the sports betting market is not really wanting to drop a down payment on him against the current champion.
Pulev is definitely up for the challenge. He arguably has a good chin, but how much can the 39-year-old veteran absorb as he looks to provide an upset?
Odds For This Event
The market is heavily favorable towards Joshua. For the moneyline, our sportsbook has the odds are currently sitting at:
- Joshua -1000
- Pulev +600
* odds are subject to change
Potential Winning Pick
Joshua has improved, even though it might be hard to believe for the outstanding champion. In recent bouts, he has shown an evolved strategy and looks more like a traditional boxer. In his rematch with Ruiz, he typically stuck to moving to avoid any punches coming his direction. This ultimately was a stepping stone to his decision victory.
Before that fight, and even in the first attempt between those two, Joshua usually was the aggressor that tried to bully his opponents around the ring for the knockout victory. That method has been dangerous at times and arguably resulted in the only loss on his resume.
Looking at Pulev, he is patient and likes to work his opponents down. There are even times where he is fairly hesitant to let his hands go. He also works well behind jabs, often keeping his distance from opponents that tend to be aggressive. This can work well for him as the fight progresses, and is something to think about when making your choices on the boxing odds.
Joshua will most likely take this one as late as possible against an opponent who has gone the distance in five of his last seven fights. In fact, dating back to 2016, every single one of Joshua’s six fights has been at least seven rounds or more. The last time Joshua put forth a knockout victory before the third-round bell was against Eric Molina four years ago. Not saying this will not happen, but Pulev is great at defending and will most likely keep doing the same as he always has been.
Look for this one to go at least between rounds nine and 12 with Joshua looking like both forms of himself. If it makes it that far, you can also look for Joshua to take advantage of the situation and score a knockout. Check out our other boxing props for this fight.
