ODDS: JOE JOYCE VS. ZHANG ZHILEI; MIKAELA MAYER VS. CHRISTINA LINARDATOU

By: Jay Calderon‍

On Saturday, at the Copper Box Arena in London, England, and live on BT Sport (UK) and ESPN (USA), undefeated Heavyweight Joe Joyce will battle former Olympian Zhang Zhilei.

Heading into fight night, Joyce is a sizeable favorite, coming in at a clip of -1100,will with Zhilei landing at a mark of +600.

It should be obvious you have very little value in a Joyce money line bet. While Joe is a deserving favorite, there's just no reason to risk so much for such a little return. Zhilei, on the other hand, is a decent opportunity. Again, you have to remember the dude is 39 years of age. Still, it's Heavyweight boxing and he's a skilled operator. Weirder things have happened.

The over/under is set at 7.5 with the over landing at -115 and the under coming in at - 125. The over interests me a bit more here.

Joyce has a high stoppage percentage, but his fights have gotten longer as the competition has gotten better. Against his best opponents -- Bermane Stiverne, Bryant Jennings, Daniel Dubois, Joseph Parker -- Joyce has averaged 9.75 rounds. Ultimately, Joe wears his opponents down more than blows them away.

What's more, Zhilei has shown a decent chin thus far. And, if you think Zhang pulls off the upset, it would likely be in a longer fight considering the chin Joyce possesses. All in all, I can comfortably imagine this fight makes it into the later rounds.

LINKS:

- JOYCE-ZHILEI PREDICTION

- JOYCE-ZHILEI PREVIEW

In the co-featured bout of the evening, former Jr. Lightweight titlist Mikaela Mayer will be moving up in weight to take on former Lightweight titlist Christina Linardatou.

Mayer is a sizeable favorite in this contest, standing at a clip of -1000, with Linardatou landing at a +500.

The money line is one that I would stay away from in this contest. I think Linardatou is an underdog for a reason, and you get little value in taking the odds on favorite in Mayer. As with the main event, simply too much risk with too little in the way of reward.

Similarly, I'm not all that fascinated with the over/under set in this bout. The over/under is set at 8.5 with the over coming in at -1400 and the under landing at +600.

Let me start by saying you can avoid the over, as there is no value.

On the other hand, while the under might entice you, there are two things to remember. For starters, women's boxing hardly has stoppages. Furthermore, these particular female fighters aren't massive punchers.

In total, the pair have 34 professional bouts and have only amassed 11 stoppages combined, for a KO percentage of 32.35. It should also be noted that neither of these fighters has been stopped themselves.

All that to say: Expect to hear the scorecards in this one.

LINKS:

- SCHEDULE & BETTING ODDS

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