- Floyd Mayweather Jr. has opened as the -1700 betting favorite to beat former MMA fighter Aaron Chalmers in their 8-round exhibition boxing match this Saturday at the O2 Arena in London.
- Chalmers, who defeated Alexander Zeledon on point during his pro boxing debut last year, has hit the boards at +650 odds via BetUS.
- Mayweather also has an agreement to fight former UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo later this year.
The betting odds for this weekend’s exhibition boxing bout between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Aaron Chalmers are out. Not surprisingly, Mayweather is the heavy betting favorite to win.
According to the online sportsbook BetUS, Mayweather is the -1700 betting favorite to beat Chalmers who hit the betting boards at +650 odds.
The fight against Chalmers is a confirmed boxing match scheduled for 8 rounds at London’s O2 Arena on February 25th. It will be the first boxing bout, whether professional or exhibition, in the UK for Mayweather.
Mayweather TKO's Deji in the sixth round 😳
(via @GlobalTitansFS)pic.twitter.com/oUrC4Rpgwb
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) November 13, 2022
Mayweather With Controversial Stoppage of Deji
Mayweather is coming off his fifth exhibition fight, a 6th-round TKO win over Deji Olatunji last November 13, 2022, in a bout that ended with a controversial stoppage.
Money Mayweather opened at -2000 odds during that bout and looked like he dominated Olatunji from start to finish. While there was no controversy about who won the bout, the stoppage looked too early and that was what was controversial about that fight.
The former Pound for Pound no. 1 boxer in the world retired from boxing in 2015 after compiling a 49-0 unbeaten record and 15 major world titles won from the super featherweight to the light middleweight division.
Mayweather would un-retire in 2017 and defeat UFC superstar Conor McGregor via 11th round TKO to improve to 50-0 with 27 knockouts as a pro boxer.
After the McGregor win, Mayweather has stayed away from pro boxing and has preferred celebrity exhibition boxing matches. To date, Money Mayweather has fought 5 exhibition matches, including two against Logan Paul and Don Moore which were non-scored bouts.
Now, 46 years of age, Mayweather continues to look for big-money paydays against opponents who are, or were, not professional boxers. He is 3-0 with three knockouts in exhibition fights. Two other exhibition fights were non-scored contests.
Aaron Chalmers wins Pro Boxing Debut
Meanwhile, Chalmers won his professional boxing debut when he defeated six-bout journeyman Alexander Zeledon last June 17, 2022, in a lackluster bout at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England.
Chalmers was eyeing a fight against fellow former MMA fighter turned celebrity boxer Anthony Taylor before getting the call to fight Mayweather.
Prior to that boxing match, Chalmers’ combat sports experience was a seven-bout professional MMA career split between BAMMA and Bellator MMA. Chalmers posted a 5-2 record as a pro-MMA fighter but lost two out of his last three bouts and went 2-2 under Bellator MMA.
But more than his MMA career, Chalmers is popular for joining the cast of the British reality series Geordie Shore during its 8th season and left after Season 16. Additionally, he appeared in the sixth series of Ex on the Beach opposite Maisie Gillespie. Chalmers was also part of the spinoff series Goldie Shore OGs produced by MTV.
Although his combat sports career isn’t what you would expect from a Mayweather-worthy opponent, he is the second MMA fighter that Mayweather has fought after Nasukawa.
But, while Nasukawa was a featherweight MMA fighter, Chalmers has fought at welterweight and has gone as high as a catchweight of 163 pounds, which means Mayweather won’t be able to push him around.
Aaron Chalmers confident he’ll outperform Floyd Mayweather’s last foe Deji: ‘He kind of s*** himself’ https://t.co/cfCdeUXmqo pic.twitter.com/eZPwof0nGq
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) February 22, 2023
Chalmers Promises to Outperform Deji
In an interview with MMA Fighting, Chalmers did not promise a victory but instead, he vowed to outperform Mayweather’s most recent opponent Deji, who according to Chalmers lost the bout because he turned into a fanboy. He says that this is a win-win situation for him where a victory, longshot as it looks, is going to open many doors for him.
Chalmers talked about going to the PFL and chasing Jake Paul to challenge the former Disney actor to a double crossover showdown. Jake Paul is also scheduled to fight this weekend, and he is listed as a -170 betting favorite to beat Tommy Fury in an “all or nothing” boxing showdown.
But before he thinks about fighting Jake Paul, Chalmers has a tough task ahead of him this weekend.
Online sportsbook BetUS has listed the Mayweather vs Chalmers bout as a -165 favorite Not to go the distance, with the OVER/UNDER rounds currently pegged at 7.5 rounds. Mayweather has won all of his scored exhibition bouts via knockout.
Meanwhile, Floyd Jr. is linked to an upcoming boxing bout with former UFC bantamweight champion Jose Aldo. Bleacher Report said earlier this month that Mayweather has agreed to box Aldo later this year.
Online sportsbook BetOnline has opened the betting odds for that possible bout with Mayweather listed as the -1200 favorite and Aldo the +600 underdog.
