Most of us are familiar with the idea of a sporting event having a draw, but do you know how such a thing works in the world of mixed martial arts? In the following article, we’ll discuss the ins and outs of MMA betting involving betting odds, prop bets, and more.
MMA Versus Other Sports
First of all, let’s establish some important points regarding mixed martial arts (MMA) versus other sports. MMA is a combat sport that grew in popularity along with video games and online gaming. It first took the world by storm in the early 90s when a group of fighters challenged each other in a tournament-style fighting event. Since those days, MMA has become an increasingly popular sport, and hundreds, if not thousands, of events take place around the world each year.
While there are many notable and popular sports that don’t involve physical contact (such as baseball, cricket, and hockey), MMA is certainly not one of them. It’s a contact sport where fighters of all shapes and sizes engage in brutal battles that can see fighters knocked out, finished in brutal fashion, or even die from injuries (which is why the sport is officially known as ‘Combat Sport’).
Many people enjoy watching MMA fights because they can see real battles happen between two evenly matched opponents. It’s fair to say that MMA is a little more bloodthirsty than other sports, and that makes it a little more exciting. However, despite the fact that it’s a brutal sport, there’s actually a lot of strategy involved, and that makes it a lot less bloody.
General Principles Of An MMA Draw
Now that we’ve established the fact that MMA is a combat sport that involves a lot of strategy and physical violence, let’s move on to discuss the basis of an MMA draw. Just like in real fighting, the aim in an MMA fight is to knock your opponent out, and in order to do that, you use a combination of punches, kicks, and knees to wear down your opponent. So although it might not seem like there’s a whole lot of strategy involved, there is actually a lot of pre-fight and post-fight planning that goes into an MMA bout. This is also why many people consider MMA to be a lot more than just a sport – it’s a way of life for those who enjoy it.
As a result of this extensive planning and strategizing, it’s not all that surprising that the majority of martial arts-related sports have adopted a draw system. The principle of a draw in sports is very similar to a coin toss in a poker game. If you don’t believe us, just try explaining to your friends and family members that instead of having one winner in a fight, you have two. They might not all that readily get on board with your particular brand of madness. But that’s how it is in sports of the mind. You either take them on board or you alienate them from your side of the argument. It’s as simple as that.
Betting On The Draw In An MMA Match
It’s time to dive into the exciting world of betting on MMA, which as we’ve established, is primarily involved with a bit of strategy and a lot of bloodletting. Just like in real fighting, getting knocked out is usually a pretty definitive sign of a losing fight. This has led to the development of various betting strategies where gamblers try and determine who is likely to win a particular fight based on a number of factors. One of the main factors is how the fight goes. If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll know that we’ve established that MMA is, at its core, a sport of the mind. As a result, it is almost always a case of figuring out which fighter is the more mentally prepared individual on that given day. This might not seem like an exact science, but with so many variables at play (not least of which is the health of the two fighters), it can be a very fickle science indeed.
Since it is quite often a case of determining which fighter is the more prepared individual on that given day, many bookmakers will only grant victory to the more prepared individual. This has led to the development of ‘parlays’ where you place a bet on both fighters to win, and if one of the fighters shows superior skill and strategy, you’ll win both your money back plus some. Another way of looking at it is that you’re essentially placing a double bet – you’re backing either fighter to win, but you’re also using a bit of a bonus scheme where if one of them wins, you’ll earn yourself some extra cash.
MMA Odds And Prop Bets
The other crucial aspect of any sporting event is the odds and prop bets that can be placed on the result. Just like in real life, when you become familiar with the odds, you can begin to understand why a sporting event might have a certain outcome. For example, let’s say that you’re watching a heavyweight boxing match and that the odds are 5–1 in favor of the lighter fighter. This means that if you were to wager £100 on the match, you’d gain £500 back if your pick wins (assuming of course that both fighters are of an even caliber).
Odds and prop bets can be a real craze in sportsbooks, and this is where the majority of sports betting goes these days. It would be a missed opportunity if we don’t discuss the many different types of odds and prop bets that are available for MMA matches. These include but are not limited to the following:
Over/Under
Odds and prop bets can be used to gauge just how seriously a particular fight is being taken. If you’re watching a lightweight match and the odds are 3–1 in favor of the heavier fighter, this usually means that the match is being treated as a joke by the bookmakers, or at least as a bit of a mismatch. On the other hand, if you see heavy odds in favor of the lighter fighter, this usually indicates that the match is being seriously considered as a championship fight. This is why it’s important to keep an eye on the odds when placing bets – if the odds aren’t favorable, it might be a good idea to sit this one out.
Head-to-Head
If you’ve been following our articles on this website, you’ll know that we like to keep a close eye on statistics when it comes to individual fights. One important piece of information to keep an eye out for is the head-to-head record between the two fighters. Just like in real fighting, if you look at the matchup record, you can get a good idea of which fighter is the more equipped mental athlete on that particular day. For example, let’s say that you’re watching a bantamweight fight and the head-to-head record is 7–1 in favor of the smaller fighter. Then you’ll know that the smaller fighter is the more prepared mental athlete on that day, and vice versa.
Round-By-Round
If you look at the odds and prop bets for each round in a given fight, you can get a good idea of how the fight is developing. If the odds are even and the fight is being considered a competitive one, round-by-round odds should make sense – if one fighter is doing well and the odds are starting to favor them, it might be a good idea to bet on them in subsequent rounds.
Last Man Standing
Just as in real fighting, some bouts are more competitive than others. If you see that one fighter is getting the better of the other one, even if the fight is far from over, this usually means that one of them is more prepared than the other one and that the match will come to an end in a one-sided assault. In these situations, it might be a good idea to bet on the already-defeated fighter. After all, it’s their money that is being risked and there’s no guarantee that the other fighter will continue even if they’re winning the first round.