Enjoy MMA Betting & Odds on Bet777

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is one of the fastest-growing sports in the world. Over the last 30 years, numerous promotions have sprung up to showcase an increasing number of MMA fighters, with UFC, Bellator and One being the most popular current promotions. Any time an MMA event is held, it’s a great opportunity for MMA betting at Bet777. We are not merely talking about betting on your favourite fighter to win or someone you do not like to lose. MMA events usually comprise approximately 10 fights per event. With a careful look at the MMA odds, it’s a great chance to create an accumulator bet for the entire card and if you are feeling very confident, you’ll be able to predict the method and maybe even the time that a victory will occur. If you can beat the MMA odds, they you’ll end up with some very healthy returns. But you need to know what to look for first. That’s where we can help.

Know your Fighters

The first thing you will need to do to succeed in MMA betting is to know your fighters. With well over 500 fighters on the UFC’s books alone, this can be a tricky proposition. But most of them have a Wikipedia page, while others have highlight reels available on YouTube, so it’s not too difficult to track down some footage and take a look at what they’re about.

The first thing you will need to know about a given fighter when MMA betting is what their background is. This tends to be split into one of four categories: kickboxing, wrestling, BJJ or boxing. This gives you an idea of their strengths. The fighter will need to be skilled in all aspects of MMA, but they will have a speciality. Kickboxers will be skilled at kicking from distance and landing knees in when the fighters are close to each other (known as being ‘in the clinch’). Wrestlers on the other hand, will try to take their opponents down and/or throw them around. BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) fighters are also more comfortable fighting on the ground and will be looking to advance to a submission hold. Boxers, finally, are happiest on their feet, looking to rock an opponent with a well-timed punch before finishing the job with some ground-and-pound.

Take for example the recent high-profile MMA fight between Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov. McGregor may be one of the most famous sportsmen on the planet, but in terms of MMA odds, he was an underdog throughout the build-up to the fight and this was reflected when he was submitted in the fourth round. McGregor is a striker, with a left hand that can drop almost anyone if he hits you cleanly enough. But pundits did not believe that would be good enough against Khabib’s superior wrestling, and the MMA odds showed this. Khabib, who has been wrestling almost full-time since he was a child, was just too strong for McGregor (and in fact anyone else he has ever fought – he has an unbeaten record of 28 wins).

Know their Form

Once you have established a fighter’s style, it’s time to look at how they match up against other fighters. Sticking with McGregor, if we look back over his previous fights, patterns emerge. When he is fighting primarily boxers, he is dominant. When faced with a wrestler, things are less clear. Chad Mendez, with his college wrestling background, had McGregor in trouble in the second round. Nate Diaz, who is a BBJ black belt, was able to submit McGregor for his first loss in the UFC. All this history played into the MMA betting that took place during the Khabib fight and his form against wrestlers changed the MMA odds.

This is not to say that things usually work out as planned in MMA betting. Upsets can and do happen. A fighter who has been completely outclassed and dominated during most of three rounds can still get a lucky punch and knock the other guy out. Often, you will see a string of upsets, and this can be very lucrative for MMA betting. Take UFC Fight Night 61, which featured a headline bout between heavyweights Frank Mir and Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva. Over the course of that night, 10 of the 11 scheduled fights were won by the underdog. This upset in MMA odds cost one sportsbook over $1 million.

Pay attention to the mind games

As with all combat sports, “talking smack” is a huge part of the game. If you can get yourself inside your opponent’s head, then you can gain a competitive advantage. However, push it too far and it will work against you. Back to McGregor/Khabib, and obviously, Irishman has a gift for infuriating his opponents. But this was an unusual case – Khabib finished the fight before getting angry and jumping over the side of the cage. Other instances are more successful.

TJ Dillashaw and Cody Garbrandt were teammates at one point but fell out. In two separate title fights, Garbrandt was successfully goaded into reckless and angry attacks, and twice, Garbrandt paid the price. British fighter Michael Bisping had a similar method, which occasionally backfired (see for example his fight against Dan Henderson). Ronda Rousey played the hard-ass, angry fighter to Holly Holm’s quiet and respectful martial artist but when they met in the ring, Holm dominated Rousey so much that she quit the sport and joined the WWE.

Check their weight

The final piece of the MMA betting jigsaw means trying to get a handle on a fighter’s general fitness. Almost all UFC fighters engage in a practice called ‘weight-cutting’. Because weigh-ins for a fight are the day before the event itself, fighters have a narrow window in which to pile on weight to give them an advantage on the night. Of course, if everyone is doing it, the advantages are nullified. Weight-cutting is a risky business. It involves dehydrating yourself as much as possible to hit a particular weight on the scales, and then putting it all back on again. MMA fighters have died during weight-cutting; countless others have been hospitalised.

FAQs

Does the method of victory matter?

It does, and you can bet on the different methods of victory, including KO and TKO.

Do disqualifications count in MMA?

Yes, fights can be officially decided if one fighter is disqualified.

Is round betting available at Bet777?

There are plenty of round-specific markets available for all major MMA fights.