A sport that has surged in popularity in recent years is Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), and in particular, the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC – the biggest professional MMA organization around.
The sport is gripping to watch, with fighters giving it their all for a shot at the title. And there’s always a fresh crop of exciting new fighters emerging. In this guide, we’ll take a look at some of those prospects. We’ll also explore the background behind the UFC and share some top tips for betting on fights.
Understanding how the UFC works
The UFC exclusively organizes MMA fights, as well as promoting them. The sport has become global, and although many events take place in the US, they occur in Europe and beyond too.
Fights take place in an octagon, which has an eight-sided cage surrounding a mat. They typically last for three rounds of five minutes each.
Each UFC event is made up of a number of bouts, some of which are for titles. These titles are awarded to the champion of 12 different weight divisions for both men and women. Some examples of these divisions are flyweight, featherweight, lightweight, middleweight and heavyweight.
How to bet on the UFC
There are various ways in which you can bet on the UFC. One of the most common – as well as the simplest – is to back a match winner. This just involves picking one fighter to beat the other.
Depending on who you back, the odds for these types of bets may not be great. You do have the option to bet on the draw for better odds, but such outcomes are few and far between.
Another bet you could try is on the number of rounds completed. Most UFC fights have three rounds, though some have five. It’s possible to make over/under bets on the total number of rounds completed.
For example, if you were betting on a five-round match and predicted that it would be over before round three, you could place a bet of under 3.5. This is a great kind of bet to place if you’re backing a fighter known for quick submissions or knockouts, such as Francis Ngannou.
This leads us to another type of bet you can make – the method of victory. In UFC fights, there’s more than one way to beat an opponent. You can force them into submission, knock them out, or get the fight stopped by the referee, if they’re forced to intervene.
So, if you know that the fighter you’re backing is an expert in submissions, you may want to back that method of victory, usually for greater odds than if you’d just back them for the win.
It’s worth spending some time researching sports betting promotions. Some deals and offers could see your first bet matched up to $2,000, meaning you could get an extra 50% for free. This is a great tip for making extra money – if you call the fight right, that is.
The best future prospects
There’s always a lot of talk of the big names of the UFC, such as Conor McGregor and Amanda Nunes, but there’s not a lot said about the other big names of the sport. Here’s a run-down of a few fighters to watch out for.
Alex Pereira
Brazilian by birth, Pereira is a two-weight, world champion kickboxer who made a really good start to his career in the UFC. He defeated Andreas Michailidis in his first bout, showing off some impressive grappling skills in the process.
People are already speaking of a fight with Israel Adesanya. In fact, the pair have already fought each other during their kickboxing days. Pereira won on both occasions.
Casey O’Neill
At just 23, O’Neill has a long career ahead of her. So far, she’s undefeated in professional MMA and is constantly improving. The Scottish-Australian is known for her strong work ethic and focus. But she needs more wins under her belt to prove she has what it takes. She’ll no doubt battle hard in the flyweight division in 2022 to prove herself.
Shavkat Rakhmonov
Hailing from Kazakhstan, Rakhmonov began life in the UFC in terrifyingly good form. He’s had 14 professional fights to date, winning all by stoppage. Included in that defeated number are Alex Oliveira and Michel Prazeres, two experienced and skilled fighters.
The welterweight will want to kick on from there and if he can keep up his good form, he could get a shot at the title soon.