IT'S THE FINAL COUNT DOWN!

We are a little over 24 hours away from the start of the Oscar de la Hoya-Manny Pacquiao pay-per-view, and that means it's time to look at the odds. Lines are taken, as always, from Bodog.

Let's start big. The main event. "The Dream Match." Oscar and Manny, 147 pound limit, the biggest fight of the boxing year.

Oscar de la Hoya is the favorite (-170), but Manny Pacquiao is no huge underdog (+140), either.

It's a fight that so heavily depends on things playing out. It's tough to see the fight in one's mind, because the fight is not one that was really a serious thought until the negotiation process.

You're either betting on Oscar's size being too much for Manny, or Manny's skill and stamina being too much for Oscar. Or Oscar not being able to catch Pacquiao. I hope you don't bet on Manny hurting Oscar, because few ever really have.

Juan Manuel Lopez (-3500) is a massive favorite over Sergio Medina (+1700) in the featured undercard bout, as well he should be. Medina's record looks nice before you take more than a glance at the W-L mark. Like many of his Argentinian brethren, he's beaten no one. His lone loss came against Rey Bautista, who has fallen on rocky times. Lopez should cream him.

Victor Ortiz is the expected favorite (-550) against Jeff Resto (+350), but not by the gaudy odds I thought he might have gotten. Resto is still perhaps carrying a small amount of shine from his younger days.

The biggest overseas fight of the weekend is the WBC super middleweight title clash between Carl Froch (-295) and Jean Pascal (+235). I still think Pascal has a really good shot at beating Froch if he uses his hand speed and moves effectively, but that would be asking Pascal to finally start "getting it" about himself, and getting him to admit he's not Roy Jones circa 1997.

Amir Khan (-1700) is the obvious favorite against club fighter Oisin Fagan (+850). Should be a Khan KO early, but God only knows with that chin.

Hopefully Khan won't become Audley Harrison (-750) who faces Martin Rogan (+450) on the same card. "Rogie" won a Prizefighter tournament in London back in April, sort of a sad sack "Contender" with a bunch of three-round fights. He's 10-0 with five knockouts, but has zero experience against anyone with Harrison's skills. And I realize exactly what I'm saying there, yes.

Colin Lynes (-150) and Paul McCloskey (+120) fight in a few hours for the vacant English junior welterweight title. The English middleweight title is up for grabs tomorrow between Paul Smith (-200) and Steven Bendall (+160).

Bet wisely, if you bet at all.

Source: This is Nottingham

Unbeaten super middleweight contenders Carl Froch (23-0, 19 KO) and Jean Pascal (21-0, 14 KO) will fight on December 6 to decide the vacant WBC title in Froch's hometown Nottingham.

British champion Froch, 31, has been out of action since May, when he beat late replacement Albert Rybacki via fourth round TKO at the Nottingham Arena. He was to face Denis Inkin, who repeatedly pulled out of the bout. It was the same night that Timothy Bradley upset Junior Witter for the WBC junior welterweight title.

Froch then attempted to pursue a fight with Jermain Taylor, who opted instead for more money to take on Jeff Lacy in his super middleweight debut, coming on November 15. He has also called out Joe Calzaghe, who vacated the title, on numerous occasions, to no avail.

Haitian-Canadian Pascal, 25, last fought in January, beating Omar Pittman in a fight where he dominated before taking his foot off the gas pedal and getting himself in way too much trouble. He was part of an ESPN2 double-header with Edison Miranda that night (the night Miranda turned David Banks' lights out), and the card had been designed to set up a Miranda-Pascal fight for the summer. It never came to pass.

Early favorite? I don't know. Froch will have a big hometown edge, and he's a fine boxer, but he was unimpressive against Rybacki, who came in with a soft, pretty record. Pascal can be electric, just lightning fast, but he also has bad defensive lapses and can box his way out of fights, like he did against Pittman.

If both guys fight their best, I favor Pascal. He's a more dynamic fighter.