Bookies will take a bath if McGregor knocks out Mayweather
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Floyd Mayweather Jr., left, and Conor McGregor pose for photographers during a news conference Aug. 23 in Las Vegas. The two are scheduled to fight in a boxing match Aug. 26.
LAS VEGAS >> If Conor McGregor manages to knock out Floyd Mayweather Jr., Las Vegas bookmakers will suffer the biggest single event loss in the history of sports betting.
McGregor fans are flooding casinos with small bets on the longshot mixed martial artist. He makes his pro boxing debut Saturday night against Mayweather, who is 49-0 and considered the best defensive fighter of his generation.
About 95 percent of the bets are on McGregor. Mayweather bets are much bigger — an average of $4,000 per bet to McGregor’s $125 — but that isn’t enough to cover the casinos’ potential losses.
William Hill oddsmaker Nick Bogdanovich says his chain will suffer its worst lost ever if McGregor gets a knockout.
