Amir Khan

You wouldn’t think that Boxing could get so complicated would you. Well, the WBA, the governing body of the sport has sanctioned a rematch between Britain’s Amir Khan and Lamont Peterson after the controversy of the first match. The American was awarded the light-welterweight bout under a cloud of controversy, after a mystery man was seen ringside interacting with the judges. Scores were apparently changed on the cards, giving Peterson the edge in the fight. It was Khan’s camp which disputed the result because of the presence of the Mystery Man Mustafa Ameen whose presence with the WBA judges has some influence on the outcome. Apparently, Ameen corrected a score by one of the judges who was “feeling unwell” so it is no wonder that Amir Khan’s camp was a bit aggrieved for coming out on the losing end of strange circumstances. American Peterson will get to keep the title (the IBF version) as Khan lost both that one and the WBA version in the defeat against Peterson. However, Khan’s camp withdrew the judgement appeal against the result as the WBA offered a rematch for their version of the title. Peterson had originally agreed to re-fight Khan again in a rematch but now, after the WBA’s sanction of a rematch, he has said that he will appeal against that. The WBA want a rematch in May with the proceeds being split 50/50 between the two fighters. It is all taking away from the credibility of the sport really, and there is a heck of a lot of pettiness going on. But it could mean that we could be looking at Amir Khan v Lamont Peterson boxing betting again in the middle of the year. The WBA rematch would take place in Los Angeles on May 19th and with the history between the two fighters and the two camps already turning a bit sour, it would be something to look forward to. The bookies have been keen to jump on this story and SkyBet have already pencilled in Amir Khan as 1/4 favourite to take the rematch, with Paddy Power stretching Lamont Peterson out at 9/2. After losing the first match on a points decision, and clearly a dubious one at that, Khan would no doubt be a little wiser and sharper about the challenge that would await him. Goodness forbid that that a rematch ended in a draw, but that result fetches 30/1 at 888Sport.

Online bookmaker SkyBet give new customers registering an account a free £10 bet as a welcome bonus. The great thing about this offer, is that it is a completely free £10 bet to enjoy. There is nothing to do in order to get the free SkyBet £10 bet, other than register an account as a new customer. The free bet will automatically be credited to your account.

I know self-confidence is an integral part of a fighter’s armour but I just don’t like it when chickens are being counted before the metaphoric eggs have hatched. Amir Khan has already been talking of a possible match-up with Ricky Hatton ahead of the mandatory defence of his WBA light-welterweight against Dmitry Salita, and the possibility of entertaining the Vegas fight fans in 2010, and that is showing disrespect to a man who has a point to prove. New York-based but Ukranian-born Salita will be no pushover as his record of 30 wins and one draw suggests. The ‘Star Of David’, as his fans in the Jewish sector of Brooklyn have dubbed him, felt a real sense of grievance when Khan was giving the chance to challenge Andreas Koltenik for the WBA crown ahead of recognised number one contender Salita and is determined to show that can be a worthy champion himself. Khan‘s camp, however, are supremely confident their man will successfully defend his title following an extended spell at his California training camp where he’s been sparring alongside the likes of Manny Pacquiao. Khan‘s coach Freddie Roach, who has been given much of the credit for the Bolton fighter’s progress since being knocked out by Breidis Prescott last year, has described Salita as having ‘sticky feet’. But what is unquestionable is that he is also very durable and has the ability to knock his man down given the opportunity. Khan, of course, may not give him the chance to land a big punch but the Briton has shown a vulnerability when pinned on the ropes himself and for that reason alone he makes little appeal at his current 1-6 general quote. Salita, a general 9-2, has been the underdog for many of his professional bouts so won’t be fazed by the fact that the majority of spectators inside Newcastle’s Metro Arena will be baying for his blood. On this one, I’m going to suggest you cover your bets. Back Khan to win inside the distance at 4-5 with Coral, William Hill and Ladbrokes, but have a little saver on Salita to win on points (20-1 with Stan James) because I feel this bout will last a lot longer than some pundits are predicting.

It’s obvious I’m not the only one who thinks a TKO is a rather unsatisfactory way to win a boxing match and layers have got themselves in something of a tangle over both the manner and the merit of Amir Khan‘s decision over Marco Antonio Barrera last weekend. True, the up-and-coming Bolton fighter was ahead on all of the judges’ scorecards when the referee called a halt to proceedings in the fifth round of his bout with the Mexican, but it’s difficult to gauge how severely the gash Barrera received in an opening round clash of heads had affected him and, as several firms don’t count a technical knockout as a regular stoppage, who would pay out on what and to whom over the outcome. William Hill have been happy to settle bets on a Khan victory, however, and go 4-11 about him beating Barrera again if a rematch could be arranged. The London-based firm have a different opinion to Betfred over whether Khan will win one of the four world titles available in 2009, however. Hills go 4-6 while their rivals are offering 13-8. Given that the brilliant Juan Manuel Marquez owns three of those belts, that may not be too bad a price!

England‘s abject performance in the 20/20 game in Port Of Spain at the weekend has seen their odds for a victory in the upcoming one-day series against the West Indies lengthen dramatically. Several firms now go 10-11 each for the five-match face-off after the Windies followed up their test series success with a comfortable six-wicket win in Trinidad, albeit aided by some eccentric umpiring. Kevin Pietersen, unsurprisingly, remains favourite to score most runs for England in the series (a general 5-2) while captain Chris Gayle is the same price to be the West Indies’ leading run-maker.

I had to look twice, rub my eyes, then look again when bookmakers sent me their early odds on the upcoming Amir Khan- Marco Antonio Barrera match-up last week. Was this possible? Had I fallen on a bet in which I couldn’t possibly lose? Yes, it was true, skybet were going 6-4 for a Barrera win while William Hill had taken the complete opposite view i.e. 6-4 Khan. With 22-1 quoted for a draw punters were, for a short time at least, able to get ahead of the game without fear of losing. Unfortunately, the shutters soon came down with wager limits being imposed by at least one of the two firms (I won’t embarass them by saying which one),
 That isn’t to say that all of the value has disappeared from the market, however, as boylesport customers can still get 13-10, while William Hill‘s compilers clearly haven’t been impressed by Khan‘s recent performances and are still offering even money the former Olympic silver medallist proves too lively for the legendary Mexican at the MEN Arena on March 14th. Barrera is still a world-class fighter and his demolition of Naseem Hamed at the height of his powers in 2001 will live long in the memory of British fight fans. Even though Amir Khan has massive potential, he hasn’t yet proved he has the talent to scale the heights Hamed did and, even at the age of 35, Barrera may still have the guile and power to secure one last big pay day.

Lastly, Betfred customers received a strange e-mail on Sunday night stating that its online operations was to be based in Gibraltar with immediate effect. Petre (Gibraltar) Ltd is apparently now handling all of Betfred‘s internet betting instead of Done Bros (Cash Betting) Ltd, though we are still awaiting a statement from the company as to whether this will affect customers or how Customs and Excise are to be appeased. As they say – watch this space!