How to Bet on MMA

Trying to land the perfect picks & predictions for MMA bets can be a tough task. You literally have two fighters trying to take each other’s heads off to win a fight, with the better of the two winning. 

Thankfully, MMA has come a long way to bring certain rules and combine techniques to make fights more appealing and easier to read for bets. Below you can see how to find bets to make on MMA. 

Read the Odds

One of the most important factors you need to realize for mma betting is how to read the odds. If you do not know how much a bet will make or cost you, then it takes key elements out of the bet. 

Moneyline odds are the most common measurement for bets. You will either see them positive, negative, or both like are below:

Fighter A: -150

Fighter B: +115

Fighter A is considered the favorite to win a straight up matchup in the octagon. They have a negative moneyline, which means for every $115 you wager and they win, you earn $100. 

For Fighter B, they are the underdog to potentially win this matchup since they have a plus sign. For every $100 you wager and that fighter wins, you earn $115. 

That particular example showed that the fight was somewhat close and could potentially go in the underdog’s favor. However, reading the lines alone is not the right way to analyze a fight. 

Types of Bets

For most bettors, picking a fighter to come away victorious is simple enough and can still pay out decently. If you think a fighter will win a certain way or the fight will not last long, there are betting options for that. 

The total rounds bet is exactly as it sounds, where you choose if the fight lasts longer than a given amount. The sportsbook of your choice will have a number just like the one below with odds:

Over: 1.5 (+115)

Under: 1.5 (-125)

If you choose over, you are predicting that the fight will last at least until the start of the second round or later. If you choose under, you are predicting that the fight will end before the start of the second round. The same moneyline odds apply, as noted by the positive and negative numbers in parentheses. 

The winning method is another popular betting option to consider. This is a straightforward bet, where you simply pick if a fighter will win by TKO/KO, submission, decision, or get disqualified. 

Parlay bets are another useful betting option that can stretch a dollar a long way. You can look to choose any combination of bets into one bet slip, but they all have to be correct in order for it to pay out. 

This means you can combine several moneyline picks, over/under choices, and even a method of victory pick in one slip. If even one fighter loses by decision and you had picked a knockout, the entire bet is off. So make sure you choose wisely. 

Other bets include props and futures. Future bets, as implied by name, are bets placed on things later in the year such as who you think will have a hold of a title by the end of the year in a given division. Prop bets are specifically related to each fight, which are mainly for fun and sometimes do not relate to the outcome. 

Knowing the Correct Betting Picks

Before you bet on your favorite fighter and betting option, consider taking more time to do some research. When the odds are released for a fight, it gives a good rule of thumb to see how the market thinks these fighters stack up. 

However, there is a tremendous amount of information that you can look up to see if those odds match that prediction. This means reading the latest news, looking up stats, injury reports, and even the fighting styles. 

By looking up information you might find that both fighters in a matchup typically win by decision, so it is a solid bet that the fight might end that way or last over a given round. If both fighters hate each other and are known for delivering knockouts, there is a good chance that one might knock out the other.