Thompson will face heavy favorite

Every once in a while, a boxer pulls off an upset in a heavyweight championship fight and gamblers who prefer longshot bets get paid.

It happened in 1990 when Buster Douglas entered the ring as an enormous underdog and defeated Mike Tyson for the heavyweight title.

It happened in 1964 when Cassius Clay (who later changed his name to Muhammad Ali) “shocked the world” with his victory over heavily favored champion Sonny Liston.

And Tony Thompson supporters hope that it happens again Saturday.

Thompson, who has a 31-1 record with 19 knockouts, is a major underdog for his fight against Wladimir Klitschko, which will be for the IBF, WBO and IBO heavyweight belts in Hamburg, Germany.

Klitschko, 50-3 with 44 knockouts, is listed with -650 odds over Thompson (+450) at Bodoglife.com. That means, a $100 wager on Thompson would pay $450 if he wins, while Klitschko backers have to put up $650 to win $100.

The over/under round total for the fight has over 9 1/2 listed at +135 and under 9 1/2 at -175.

Although Klitschko has been considered a big-time favorite since the fight was set, support for Thompson has grown in recent weeks. Thompson, who will turn 37 in October, has a strong jab and defeated Luan Krasniqi in a heavyweight eliminator bout in the same Hamburg ring last year.

In other boxing action this weekend, the most interesting matchup features former baseball star Jose Canseco against ex-NFL player Vai Sikahema in a celebrity fight in Atlantic City, N.J. Canseco is listed as a -155 favorite over Sikahema (+115).

Horse racing

Curlin, the 2007 horse of the year, will make his first start on grass in Saturday’s $500,000 Man o’War Stakes at Belmont Park.

Here are a few proposition bets on Curlin, available at Bodoglife.com:

What will Curlin’s margin of victory be? Over three lengths (1-1), three lengths exactly (8-1), under three lengths (5-6); Will Curlin’s winning time break the race record of 2:11.65 set by Better Talk Now in 2005? Yes (+150) or No (-200); Will Curlin remain undefeated in 2008? Yes (+250) or No (-350).

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lonnie.white@latimes.com