Fight fans prepare of a bumper weekend of action with major titles decided on shows in England and America. Sky Sports bring us a blow-by-blow account of Mairis Briedis v Krzysztof Glowacki, but the best of the night takes place on BT Sport with Josh Warrington and Kid Galahad doing battle over the featherweight world title before Tyson Fury takes on Tom Schwarz in Vegas. Here are our top Josh Warrington v Kid Galahad betting tips.
The British card, taking place at the First Direct Arena in Leeds, acts as a tasty starter with the main event backed up by a strong undercard. As well as Warrington v Galahad, followers also have Zelfa Barrett v Leon Woodstock for the Commonwealth title at super featherweight and James Metcalf v Jason Welborn for the Commonwealth at super welterweight. There’s also the chance to catch up on the careers of Mark Heffron, Troy Williamson and Lyndon Arthur.
Not Just for the Purists
Not just a night for the sport’s purists, there will also be plenty to capture the interest of casual fans and armchair boxing supporters. Bookmakers deliver a list of enticing betting markets, designed to spice up the occasion. Have your say on the winner of each fight and add a few together to create a nice priced accumulator. Small stakes for a big pay-out is the aim here. A few shrewd selections could increase your balance in good time for Fury – Schwarz later that night.
If you’re after a super single, you’ll be delighted to learn there are plenty of options available. Take advantage of the method of victory market and grab a nice price by predicting the winner and how they’ll achieve the result, either by knockout or on points. You can also pick an exact round or group of rounds, for example 7-12, covering the second half of the bout. Over/Under lets you set the bar at a stage of the fight that suits, such as over or under 8.5 rounds. There’s also a number of specials, including to be knocked down and even the draw.
Warrington Unbeaten in 28
Josh Warrington goes into fight night as the current holder of the IBF world featherweight title and has a 28-0-0 record. The fact that only six of his wins have come by knockout proves to us he is a technician who relies on his boxing skills, fast hands and combination punches to win fights, rather than one big, concussive knockout blow. The 28-year-old from Leeds will enjoy the backing of a vocal, and fiercely loyal, support on Saturday and pundits believe that will make all the difference in what’s sure to be a back-and-forth tussle.
The champion’s recent form is nothing short of astonishing and he is in the best shape of his career, as recent results show. He upset the odds to beat world champion Lee Selby in front of a sizeable crowd at Elland Road in May of last year, getting the win courtesy of a split decision. The scorecards that night read 115-113 Selby, 116-112 Warrington and the all-important 115-113 Warrington. Tighter than the victor would’ve hoped for, but it was the correct decision in such a close match and the winner went on to improve from there.
He was last seen in with Northern Ireland’s Carl Frampton when again performing against the expectations of bookmakers. Written off as a bit of a no-hoper when matched with The Jackal, he fought out of his skin to grab a stunning unanimous decision win. The cards that night gave it to Josh by margins of three rounds, four rounds and four rounds. Frampton was sent back to the drawing board to contemplate his next move, while Warrington was catapulted towards the big time. He has won over his critics and those who once doubted him are now scrambling to stay on the right side of the champ.
Bookies Have Been Won Over
That includes bookmakers who are now fully paid up members of the Josh Warrington fan club and we can hardly blame them for that. Traders had their fingers burnt when opposing Josh against both Selby and Frampton and that’s not a mistake they want to be making too often in the future. The champion is winning new fans with the passing of every fight and, as well as an army of supporters at the venue and watching the live TV coverage around the world, he also has the backing of the money men who price a successful defence as betting favourite.
Fancy backing Warrington to remain unbeaten and add career win number 29? You’ll find yourself in good company but will have to make do with a short price as there’s currently no better than William Hill’s 4/11 available. That looks rather tight in what should be a tough night, but it’s the best you’ll find at the time of writing. That means you can back Warrington in fight night accumulators or shoot for a bigger price in one of the specials.
It’s worth remembering the jolly carries a lowly 20% KO average into this fight and he has stopped just one opponent since the summer of 2016. That stat goes some way to explaining why the points win is favourite in the method of victory market with Ladbrokes offering 4/6. Again, that’s market best price. As already touched upon, Josh doesn’t make a habit of stopping men placed in front of him and he’s a chunky 9/2 at William Hill to record a seventh career KO/TKO. If you’d prefer a bit more of a safety net you can take the 2/7 at Ladbrokes about the fight going over 10.5 rounds. That covers against a late stoppage, the draw and either win on points.
Galahad’s Price Better than Expected
Kid Galahad is ranked as a man without too much chance of winning the title on Saturday but he’s an unbeaten fighter himself and one with vital championship experience. The 29-year-old from Sheffield is a former WBC International, British, Commonwealth and European winner at super bantamweight before moving up to claim the IBF Inter-Continental at featherweight. He bashed Mexican Jose Cayetano into submission inside 10 rounds two summers ago to win the latter and announce his arrival at the higher weight.
The 5ft 6inch orthodox followed that with victory over Irving Berry in three short rounds, before dispatching Toka Kahn Clary over 10 in Boston, winning a 10-round points decision that night. Galahad was last seen outpointing Brayan Mairena over eight in Sheffield in December, serving as the perfect warm-up for this shot at becoming featherweight champion of the world. He goes into the lion’s den here but has enough class about him and an unbeaten record that tells us he shouldn’t be written off too quickly. Despite what the betting odds say, a win for Kid wouldn’t rate as the biggest shock of the year. It wouldn’t even rate as the biggest of the month, given what happened to Anthony Joshua in New York against Andy Ruiz Jr.
Kid Galahad has been chalked up as an eye-catching 9/4 second favourite with Bet365 and that looks just too big. The price is more generous than we were expecting to find and although Warrington is champion and fully deserves to be favourite, we’re going to have our stake money on the underdog. This will be closer than the betting would have you believe. If you’re confident enough to take a bit more of a risk, Galahad to win on points is 4/1 at Ladbrokes, the knockout 11/1 (Bet365).
Our Tip: Galahad win at 9/4 with Bet365