An underdog once again

By Jeff Haney (contact)

Wednesday, July 30, 2008 | 2 a.m.

Former world champ Zab Judah will enter the ring as a betting underdog for the third consecutive title fight Saturday when he takes on Joshua Clottey for the vacant International Boxing Federation welterweight championship at the Palms.

Judah, ranked No. 3 by the IBF, is listed as a plus-210 underdog (risk $1 to net $2.10) in the fight for the title left open when Antonio Margarito relinquished it to set up a showdown against Miguel Cotto. Margarito scored a victory by technical knockout against Cotto on Saturday night at the MGM Grand.

Clottey, who has won four fights in a row since losing to Margarito in December 2006 as a 4-1 underdog, is a minus-250 favorite (risk $2.50 to win $1) against Judah. Ranked No. 1 by the IBF, Clottey earned a title shot by winning a 12-round decision against Shamone Alvarez in an elimination bout in December at the Hard Rock.

“It’s my time, not his time, to win a title,” Clottey (34-2, 20 knockouts) said.

Judah, 36-5 overall and 10-5 in world title fights, was a 3-1 betting underdog when he lost to Cotto in June 2007. Judah was an underdog of more than 4-1 when he lost to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in April 2006.

Judah was a huge favorite — in the range of 15-1 — when he lost to Carlos Baldomir in January 2006, a fight named the upset of the year by The Ring, a boxing magazine.

‘Big Three’ update

The attractive prices attached to a couple of football season championship propositions covered in a previous column (Sun, May 30) have lost some of their luster.

Because the props are consumer-friendly “two-way” wagering opportunities, however, the opposite side offers more value after the line moves.

On the “Big Three” NFL prop at MGM Mirage properties, bettors can wager on the Patriots, Colts and Cowboys as a single betting entry to win the Super Bowl against the “field,” or all other teams.

The earlier price on those three teams of plus-175 looked rather juicy considering the consensus odds on each of them to win the Super Bowl. Since then the line has dropped to plus-125, with the field listed at minus-145, down from minus-215.

The college football version of the prop groups Georgia, USC and Ohio State against all others. The odds on those three teams as an entry have dropped to plus-190 from plus-230. The line on the field has dropped to minus-230 from minus-280.