by King Hazard
One of the benefits of the continued growth in popularity of MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) is that the sport has gained increasingly extensive coverage among online bookmakers.
There’s now a range of markets for punters to select from on all the major fights. This weekend is a case in point, with UFC Fight Night featuring a welterweight bout between Colby Covington and Tyron Woodley as the Main event.
Every bookmaker worthy of the name is covering the event but, as with any sporting event, that doesn’t mean that they all cover it equally. A few bookies will only provide very basic coverage of the fight, offering odds on the result and perhaps one or two other markets.
However, others provide far more depth and it makes choosing the right bookmaker a major factor for MMA punters. Let’s take a look at a couple of the established big names in MMA betting with a comparison of Paddy Power Vs bet365, both of whom provide extensive coverage of the fight game.
Let’s take a look at the market coverage of the two online betting giants…
Fight Result
In terms of the Fight Result, both bookies offer former interim champion Covington as the 2/7 favourite, with former UFC Welterweight Champion Woodley available at 5/2 with Paddy Power and a slightly more attractive 11/4 with bet365.
If Woodley’s your man, then you would certainly want to be backing him at bet365 rather than Paddy Power. In the unlikely event of the fight ending as a draw, this can be backed at 50/1 with Paddy Power or 80/1 with bet365.
Method of Victory
There’s a variation in the ‘Method of Victory’ market between the bookies here, because whereas bet365 offer odds on each fighter to win by KO/TKO/DQ or Submission as a single market option, Paddy Power breaks them down into a separate markets to win by KO/TKO and another to win by Submission. Perhaps surprisingly, Paddy Power offers no DQ option.
An example of the available odds, bet365 go 10/3 on Covington to Win by KO/TKO/DQ or Submission, while Paddy Power are 5/1 on Covington to prevail by KO/TKO or 13/1 by Submission.
Fight to go the Distance
Will the fight go the full five rounds as scheduled? Neither bookie deems that to be likely, with Paddy Power offering No at 11/8 and Yes at 8/15. Bet365 have No at 6/4 and Yes at 1/2.
Round Betting
How many rounds will the fight go?
- 1 – 6/1 Paddy Power; 7/1 bet365
- 2 – 15/2 Paddy Power; 8/1 bet365
- 3 – 17/2 Paddy Power; 10/1 bet365
- 4 – 10/1 Paddy Power; 12/1 bet365
- 5 – 14/1 Paddy Power; 16/1 bet365
This is by no means a comprehensive guide to MMA betting (and there are of course many other bookmakers available), but it does show that you need to do your research prior to betting in order to ensure you get the best odds and the markets you want.
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