MMA Standard Bets
| Updated: November 10, 2025
Usually, UFC events feature multiple bouts that provide hours of action and excitement. The nature of mixed martial arts allows for a variety of wagers that go far beyond simply picking the winner. The sport lets bettors test their skills with different standard and proposition bet types, so if you want to be successful you need to understand each of them. This article aims to introduce you to the conventional MMA betting markets with which it is advisable to start your mixed martial arts wagering journey. We have explained the main aspects of each market, accompanied by basic MMA betting tips to help you enjoy a fruitful sports betting experience.
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MMA Moneyline Bet
Also referred to as an Outright Winner bet, this wager is the most widely known and placed because it is the easiest to understand. As you may guess from its name, this betting market requires you to predict which of the two fighters will defeat their opponent regardless of the method of victory or the stage of the event when this happens. Although a draw is extremely rare, it is still possible, and some online bookmakers accept bets on that outcome. In such a case, the market is called 3-Way Moneyline and looks like this:
| 3-Way Moneyline | |
|---|---|
| Result | Betting Odds |
| Alexander Volkanovski to Win | 1.12 (- 833) |
| Draw | 81.00 (+ 8000) |
| Chan-Sung Jung to Win | 6.50 (+ 550) |
The presented MMA betting odds clearly show who the favorite and underdog are, as well as the unlikelihood of a draw. If, however, you place a $10 bet on this last option and somehow guess correctly, you will end up with $800 added to your bankroll (10 x 81 − 10 = 810 − 10 = 800).
The only difference with the 2-Way Moneyline is the absence of the Draw option. Here is a typical example from a UFC fight night.
| 2-Way Moneyline | |
|---|---|
| Outcome | Betting Odds |
| Jordan Leavitt to Win | 2.05 (+ 105) |
| Trey Ogden to Win | 1.72 (- 139) |
According to the bookmaker’s odds, the fighters are more evenly matched, which makes predicting the outcome trickier. There is no doubt that odds are an integral part of every bettor’s experience. However, it is not reasonable to base your predictions solely on them. After all, bookmakers are human and can make mistakes. Moreover, online sportsbooks are economic entities that have to follow market principles, which can affect the numbers published.
Our advice is to consider the odds presented by your bookmaker of choice but, at the same time, perform your own independent research. The fighters’ recent achievements may largely foretell what to expect in the upcoming bout. The current physical form of a fighter is essential when predicting their chances of winning, so focus on the last several matches. Pay attention to both victories and losses, as well as to the respective opponents. No matter how skillful a competitor is, they occasionally meet a tricky adversary. If you uncover such a detail, you may have an advantage over bettors who have not delved so deeply into their pre-match research.
MMA Over/Under Bets
The Total Rounds wager is the opposite of the bet type above but is almost equally popular because of its simplicity and higher chance of success. By opposite we mean that the name of the winner has no importance here, since you must decide whether the fight will last over or under a predetermined number of rounds. Some online bookmakers accept bets on one threshold only, while others have odds for multiple options.
| Rounds | Over | Under |
|---|---|---|
| 1.5 | 1.16 | 5 |
| 2.5 | 1.28 | 3.5 |
| 3.5 | 1.4 | 2.75 |
| 4.5 | 1.5 | 2.5 |
While it is not mandatory for the number of rounds to be presented in halves (i.e. 1.5), you had better avoid betting on whole numbers unless you are seeking greater risk. For example, if you place your stake on an Over/Under bet set to 3 rounds and one of the fighters quits just before the start of the 4th round, you will end up with a losing bet. So, you had better find a bookie that offers a 3.5 Over/Under market. If you think the fight will last 4 rounds, you must select the over option. Logically, if you think the win will be accomplished no later than the third round, you must bet on the under option. Each round lasts 5 minutes, so .5 refers to 2:30 of the respective round.
To make an accurate prediction, you again need to know the fighters well. Get acquainted with statistics, paying particular attention to average duration of matches. Fighting style and stamina of both competitors are also extremely important. If you do not know the fighters well, spend some time researching whether they are aggressive from the first second, how strong their stamina is, whether they can withstand pain, and similar factors.
MMA Future Betting
As with many other sports, MMA allows for some bets to be placed weeks and even months in advance. UFC future betting is a challenging wagering option that requires MMA enthusiasts to predict who will win a certain belt title at the end of the calendar year. Because of the long time until the end of the season, the odds in this market are usually quite high. At the moment of writing, the odds for the 2022 UFC Lightweight Champion are as follows:
| 2022 UFC Lightweight Champion | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Oliveira | 200 | Dustin Poirier | 900 |
| Islam Makhachev | 200 | Michael Chandler | 1150 |
| Beneil Dariush | 400 | Rafael Dos Anjos | 2000 |
| Justin Gaethje | 600 | Gregor Gillespie | 2500 |
| Conor McGregor | 900 | Rafael Fiziev | 2800 |
Another type of long-term MMA wager is the outright, which enables bettors to place their bets on future fights that are yet to be confirmed. Negotiations related to major battles between star fighters involve issues like royalties, dates, venue, and more, and sometimes it takes months before your bet is settled. This is a real test of patience, but it can pay out generously. If a fight is canceled before an official date is announced, sportsbooks void all bets placed and return stakes to bettors.
Conclusion
We will end our review of standard MMA bet types with something that applies to all mixed martial arts wagers. Although mixed martial arts is a popular discipline to bet on, its popularity is not as widespread as that of football, for example. Consequently, online sportsbooks often devote more time and effort to the more popular sports, which can leave room for mispricing in MMA markets. It is definitely worth line shopping and then betting with the bookmaker that offers the most favorable odds at the time you place your wager.