MMA Betting Guide
MMA Wiz guides you through the basics of betting on MMA, where to bet and some tips on how to bet.
What is a Bet?
In its narrowest sense, a bet is a pledge of money that a certain outcome will occur. The greater the likelihood of the event occurring, the lesser the price. The less likely the event is to occur the greater the price, and therefore, the greater the potential return.
Odds Explained
The odds on fights will often change with the amount of money coming in on each side. If a bunch of money is coming in on one side, the sportsbook will adjust the odds to even out the action and get bettors betting on the other fighter. With that said, whatever the odds are when you place your bet, is the odds you get. They don’t change like in horse racing.
The sports odds, or price, on a given event can be rendered by an online sportsbook in one of three ways.
American
A price listed as +800 means that the bettor will return $800 profit on every $100 wagered, plus the original stake. +500 will return $500 profit every $100 wagered, plus the original stake. A price listed as -200 means that $200 must be wagered to make a profit of $100. The payout is then $300, the $100 won and the $200 stake.
So here is an actual example from a UFC fight, that will explain the odds a bit better.
Tito Ortiz (-140)
Rashad Evans (+120)
In this matchup, Tito is the favorite at -140. This means that for every $1.40 you bet, you win $1. So if you were to bet $140 on Tito, you’d win $100 (profit) if he is victorious. Rashad is the underdog in this match at +120. This means that for every $1 you bet, you will win $1.2o. So if you bet $100 on Rashad, and he wins, you will win $120 (profit).
Fractional
A price listed at 8/1 means that the event will return $800 for every $100 wagered, plus the original stake. 5/1 means that the event will return $500 for every $100 wagered, plus the original stake.
Decimal
A price listed at 8.00 means that the bet will return $800 for every $100 wagered. A price listed at 5.00 means that the bet will return $500 for every $100 wagered.
