Boxing Betting Headlines | Fury vs Joshua Again, Market Watch & Fight Analysis | July, 2026

By Eric Uribe, Updated on: Jul 3, 2026 12:00 AM

Biggest upcoming boxing fights

Biggest boxing betting storylines in July

News and recent events very much influence what the next boxing betting trends will be. There’s always a lot happening in the sport, but these stories are the most influential right now. In case you missed it, here’s what’s happening:

1. Will Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua take care of business to set up a showdown: a return fight for AJ is on the books for July 27 against Kristian Prenga. Joshua is a staggering -2500 favorite at most sportsbooks, but more important than that, it’s believed to be a “tune-up fight” before an all-UK showdown against Fury. Speaking of which, Fury just booked his own return bout for July 24 against Mariusz Wach in Thailand, of all places. Assuming both win, AJ vs. Fury would be on the cards next for possible late 2026, as it's been rumored.
2. Oleksandr Usyk is ready to call it a career: for the better part of a decade, Usyk has run through every major heavyweight champion of this generation — Derek Chisora, Joshua (twice), Daniel DuBois (twice too), and Fury (twice again). Yet, it was a kickboxer who came closest to beating him. Usyk bested Rico Verhoeven in front of the Egyptian pyramids on May 23 in a controversial finish. Most had him losing to Verhoeven before what looked like an early ref stoppage. Going into the fight, Usyk was -2500 to win, and Verhoeven had only one career boxing match before this. But instead of a rematch, Usyk is said to be eyeing a retirement fight instead. That's why he just vacated his WBC, WBA, and IBF world titles. No word on who he wants one final hoorah with inside the ring, but it looks like the end is very near for Usyk.
3. Rumored Garcia-Benn runs into legal issues: it’s been a months-long war of words between Connor Benn and Ryan Garcia. For months now, a welterweight bout between the two youngsters was planned for September. So much so that early boxing odds gave Garcia a sizable betting advantage at -400. But... it might not happen due to promotion issues (classic boxing, eh?). Golden Boy Promotions, which still represents Garcia, sent a cease-and-desist letter in June to the brand-new Zuffa Boxing (which promoted Benn's last fight) for allegedly trying to set up the bout behind their back. This might be what holds this fight from happening this year.
4. Vasiliy Lomachenko ends retirement early: To no one's surprise, a boxer called off his retirement to announce a comeback. That's right, Lomachenko (18-3, 12 KOs) is returning after calling it quits in June 2025. Who Lomechenko fights next has not been confirmed yet. However, the rumor mill keeps mentioning the undefeated 130-pounder Charly Suarez as a possible opponent. Suarez is only a year younger so the potential bout makes sense.

Boxing line movements in July

As a bettor, there’s a near-unlimited amount of information to guide your picks. Fight styles, tape, recent performances, etc. But want to know arguably the most valuable piece of info? Tracking boxing line movement.

By that, we mean when boxing odds swing wildly, think a favorite becoming an underdog (or vice versa) or an underdog suddenly getting even longer odds to win. These sudden shifts don’t just happen. No, no, usually it means there’s new information (a bad weigh-in, for example) that warrants the updated odds or big money is coming in and bookies have to adjust. That latter typically comes from “sharp” bettors (the professionals).

It’s not always easy to see these big line changes in real time, it’s not like bookies announce these things out loud. And when they do happen, it's not all too common since top boxers only fight once or twice a year anyway. Regardless, we constantly pore over these odd swings, and for your convenience, we’re listing any we’ve seen as of late below:

• Mayweather opened as a meager -175 favorite over Pacquiao when the fight was first announced, but in the last month, it's climbed to -275. Interesting because out of the two, Pacquiao is the one with more fight experience as of late. At this age (both fighters nearing 50 years old), who's less rusty in the ring arguably matters more than skills when they were both in their prime (which is ages ago by now). Not to mention Mayweather has more out-of-ring distractions with lawsuits than Pacquiao does. Perhaps the bookies got this one wrong?

Most-bet boxing betting markets right now

Which bets are drawing the most money and attention right now at this moment? We’ve sourced many bettors and popular online sportsbooks to get this information, and here’s what they’re saying:

• Jaron "Boots" Ennis' next fight: Ennis had a coming-out party in late June when he put down Xander Zayas three times before a seventh-round stoppage. With the statement win, Boots is now a perfect 36-0 (32 KOs) and got a hold of the WBA and WBO junior middleweight titles. Who he fights next is getting bettors' attention. Potential candidates include WBC champion Sebastian Fundora or IBF titleholder Josh Kelly, since one would think Boots wants undisputed glory. A dream fight is also available with Vergil Ortiz Jr. Bettors can stake money on any of the three options at popular sportsbooks right now.
• Futures bet — Dmitry Bivol vs. David Benavidez: After a 15-month layoff, Bivol successfully defended his light heavyweight titles against Michael Eifert on May 30. This was only weeks after Benavidez became WBA and WBO cruiserweight champion when he stopped Gilberto Ramirez mid-fight. Bivol vs. Benavidez feels like a no-brainer bout to make next, but we know boxing promoters don’t operate like that. Still, the pure potential of this superfight (likely at light heavyweight) has led to bettors chasing early odds on it.

Previous boxing news you might’ve missed

• [June 27]: Canelo Alvarez's return fight delayed: The planned Canelo comeback fight vs. WBC super middleweight champion Christian Mbilli has been moved away from its original September 12 date. No makeup date has been announced, only that it'll likely be in late October now. It's being said that Canelo asked for it to be postponed because Alvarez was enjoying time with his new daughter (born last fall) and didn't want to return to training camp just yet.
• [June 25]: Mayweather's fight with kickboxer is off: The exhibition bout between Mayweather and Greek kickboxer Mike Zambidis is no longer a thing. The events company that hired Mayweather for this (and one other fight; not Pacquiao's though) sued Mayweather for an alleged breach of contract. Mayweather is in a world of trouble over money (he also got two fresh felony charges for phony checks), and the hits don't stop coming.
• [June 13]: "Bam" Rodriguez keeps potential fight with Naoya Inoue alive: Rodriguez knocked out Antonio Vargas to improve to 24-0 (17 KOs). After the fight (and even before it), Bam was asked nonstop about facing the Japanese sensation Inoue. At this point, it feels like a matter of when (2027, anyone?), not if this dream bout takes places.
• [May 26]: Jake Paul tries to set up next fight: Paul has been out of boxing action since a KO loss to Anthony Joshua, which earned him not one, but two jaw surgeries. Never one not to keep himself in the news, Paul has floated opponents for his comeback fight whenever that is. He's called out both Francis Ngannou and Tommy Fury for a rematch.

Meet the author

Eric Uribe

Sports betting writer covering regulation, market trends, and industry news. Journalist by trade with a background in sports reporting across Nevada. Focuses on legalization, tax policy, revenue, and betting market developments. Combines betting knowledge with busine...