Combat sports is one of the prominent groups in the UK sports betting markets. Unlike football, which is the most popular, combat sports such as boxing and MMA appeal to a slightly different type of gambler. Since these sports are relatively popular but don’t have the monumental crossover appeal that the beautiful game does, gambling providers are usually more selective about the markets they’ll explore.
Here’s our top MMA betting tips of 2023.
MMA Betting Tips: How to Start Betting on MMA Online
Each sports gambling market brings its own unique flavour to the industry. Taken as one big market, it is a vast enterprise. As we discussed in our introduction, football betting is a titan dominating the sports betting industry in the UK.
However, MMA isn’t the only America-based sport that attracts considerable numbers of UK gamblers. The NBA and NFL also bring in some impressive numbers. However, MMA betting works differently from NFL betting, in which you can bet on outright Super Bowl markets or various spread betting markets. While these markets might differ, the way to access them doesn’t.
All you need to do is go to a sports betting site and browse the MMA odds that are on display. Once you find the right provider and odds that you like, you can register, deposit and play.
Finding the Right Online Sports Betting Site
With so many variables to consider before you place a sports bet, settling on the right side can enhance your experience. It is, of course, a personal preference. Still, ensuring the site has a good range of markets, a reputable set of reviews on social media and solid customer service are usually three good pillars. Given that the market is so saturated, it’s always good to do some research, and if you’re specifically looking to gamble on MMA and find the best odds, it might be best to ask some friends who bet on MMA which site they would recommend and why.
Understand How Different MMA Odds Work
Due to the one-on-one nature of combat sports like MMA, the odds take on a different model from team sports. The most common markets in MMA are methods of victory. So, you can have an outright market where you are betting only on the sole winner of the fight, regardless of how they manage it. A method of victory is a decision win, TKO or submission.
The odds for the victory method are much higher, as they are more specialized. For instance, you might have had a bet on Makhachev to knock out Volkanovski, but even though he won, because he won via decision, your bet would lose. That’s a fairly basic example, but understanding how the odds work is essential so that you don’t end up losing money in error, and understanding winning outcomes is an important part of that.
Learn How to Research Different Fights
The chances are, if you’re somebody looking to bet on MMA, you actually enjoy watching the sport, so this point might be redundant anyway. However, understanding different fighters’ strengths and weaknesses can provide some value in the market. Tom Aspinall believes he has what it takes to beat Jon Jones, but few will agree with the Brit if this fight is ever made. Considering Jones is widely thought to be the best P4P fighter in the sport, if you researched it and believed that you found value, you’d get good odds for the outcome.
Make Bets Through Research, Not Emotion
MMA is an exhilarating sport and fans have their favourite fighters. It can be this emotion that causes errors in judgement and leads to thinking with the heart instead of the head. Sportsbooks are pragmatic and often find the best subjective way of breaking down the odds. So, more often than not, if you find that the favourite is not who you think it should be, the bookmakers will have a solid rationale as to why that is.
Stay Up to Date on MMA News
Understanding how news about fighters can impact the market is crucial. This can be from personal information about the fighters or reports of any injuries they pick up in training. Reading between the lines of news stories can sometimes give you a better idea of what is happening in the market, but ensure you read around and digest news from multiple, reliable sources.
Look for Underdog Opportunities
Finding value in the market is crucial. It’s not that difficult to pick an overwhelming favourite and back them to win. While this isn’t always the case, the real challenge when you bet on combat sports is finding the odds of an upset. UFC usually has better quality, more equal matchups than boxing, but the most notable upset ever was GSP against Matt Serra in their first fight. Underdog matchups don’t always have to be this uneven, but the value in the market comes from betting on unlikely outcomes and seeing them win.
Never Bet Too Much Money All at Once
Responsible gambling is essential and should be the backbone of any bets you place. You must set ample deposit limits before you bet. If you can set time and deposit limits, you’ll be able to stay ahead of your MMA betting and ensure you keep it fun without it becoming an issue. If you think you’re starting to develop a problem, stop gambling immediately and reach out to somebody who will be able to assist you.
Keep Your Parlays Small
A parlay bet is when you combine markets to get better odds. Usually, in MMA betting, this means betting on two or more fighters on the same card to win. However, it is vital to keep these bets small, as not only are they bigger odds – meaning they’re less likely to come in – but you also need all your selections to win.
If you bet on three fighters and two of them win and one loses, you will get nothing, so hedging bets and keeping your parlays small is highly advisable if you want to keep your MMA betting strategy light and entertaining.
What else would you add to our MMA betting tips guide? Let us know in the comments?
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
