Are you wondering how UFC odds work?
In this article, we’ll look at how UFC odds work by examining the different UFC odds used and how they compare, the most common types of UFC bets, what proposition bets are, and what happens to bets after a no-contest result.
Contents
How Do UFC Odds Work?
UFC odds differ depending on where you’re located and the website you use, so let’s look at how the different UFC odds work.
Moneyline Odds – American Odds
The UFC odds for those in America work by presenting a + for the underdog and – for the favorite. The number with – for the favorite shows how much money the bettor has to bet to receive a $100 profit.
For example, if the odds are -150 and +250 for two UFC fighters, betting $150 on the favorite (-150) returns $100 profit and the original bet of $150, for a total return of $250.
The number with + for the underdog shows how much money the bettor wins (the profit) when betting $100. For example, betting $100 on an underdog of +250 pays out a total of $350, $250 profit (+250), and the original $100 bet.
Overall, the American odds above are also known as moneyline odds, which are betting on the result of a game or event. Many sports in America that have moneyline odds usually have two or three results. UFC moneyline odds most often have three potential outcomes, Fighter A, Fighter B, or a draw.
Decimal Odds – European
Decimal odds are the most frequently used odds in Europe, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia for UFC, MMA, boxing, and many other sports.
Many bettors outside of these countries prefer to use decimal odds, as they’re by far the easiest to understand and this helps avoid unnecessary confusion that the other odds create.
Decimal UFC odds work by showing the total payout the bettor wins for every $1, £1, or €1 bet placed. For example, if two UFC fighters have odds of 1.4 and 2.8, placing a €1 bet on the favorite (1.4) returns a total payout of $1.40. Placing a €1 bet on the underdog (2.8) returns a total payout of €2.80.
With decimal odds, you simply multiply the stake by the decimal odds shown to get the total payout. The total payout refers to the profit and the initial stake together.
Also, with decimal odds, the lower number always represents the favorite because a low number shows a lower total payout. The higher number represents the underdog because the total payout with the same stake is higher.
Fractional Odds – UK and Ireland
Fractional odds, or traditional odds, are used in the UK and Ireland and are by far the most complicated odds to use when betting on the UFC or any sport.
The first number (the numerator) represents the potential profit, while the second number (the denominator) represents the stake.
For example, if the odds are 4/1, this means that for every 1 unit of currency (or stake) placed on the bet, the potential profit is 4 units of currency. So if you bet £10 at 4/1 odds, the total returned is £50, £40 profit, and the original bet of £10 returned.
As another more complicated example, if the odds are 7/2, to win £7 profit you must bet £2. If the bet wins, the total return is £9, £7 profit, and the initial £2 stake returned.
If the odds are ⅕, to win £1 profit you must bet £5. If the bet wins, the total return is £6, £1 profit, and the initial £5 stake returned.
With fractional odds, the first number is lower for the favorite (⅓) and the second is higher. Whereas for the underdog, the first number is higher and the second is lower.
In order to more clearly see the difference between American odds, decimal odds, and fractional odds, here’s a table converting some UFC odds among the three.
| American Odds | Decimal Odds | Fractional Odds |
| -150 | 1.667 | 4/6 |
| -230 | 1.435 | 4/9 |
| -460 | 1.217 | 2/9 |
| -750 | 1.133 | 1/7 |
| +250 | 3.5 | 5/2 |
| +475 | 5.75 | 9/2 |
| +750 | 8.5 | 15/2 |
As can be seen, decimal odds are by far the easiest to use when it comes to how UFC odds work.
Do UFC Odds Work Best With Decimal Odds? (Easiest)
To make life easier, use decimal odds for UFC betting. While it may seem complicated if you’re used to either American odds or fractional odds, decimal odds are by far the easiest to use once you understand them – and it doesn’t take long.
Decimal UFC odds are the only type to show total return, which is the initial stake and profit shown together. The fractional and American odds show only the profit, which then requires you to add your own initial bet on top – which is an extra calculation in most cases.
If you want to remove the stake the see the profit in decimal odds, simply remove the 1. For example, if the UFC odds are 2.0, remove 1 and the profit is 1. If the UFC odds are 4.2, remove 1 and the profit is 3.2. If the odds are 1.1, remove 1 and the profit is 0.1.
It’s that easy and saves a lot of headaches. You don’t have to use different calculations for + and – with American odds, and you can easily calculate the total return and profit when betting with any amount. Decimal odds also allow you to see exactly how much you’re going to win with any betting amount.
Simply go to the settings on the betting website and change the odds display to decimal.
How Does UFC Betting Work? (UFC Prop Bets)
Now that you understand how UFC odds work, let’s take a look at some of the most popular ways of betting on the UFC and MMA (UFC prop bets), in order to see how UFC betting works.
1. Fight Result
This is the most simple UFC bet to make and it has 3 options. Simply pick fighter A, fighter B, or the draw.
2. Way of Victory
This UFC bet allows the bettor to pick how the fight will end and it has 3 options: knockout (KO/TKO), submission, or decision (Judge’s scorecard).
When picking a ‘way of victory’, bettors can bet that the fight will end a certain way without attaching either fighter to the result. For example, they may bet for the fight to end via decision and win whether the decision is unanimous or split in favor of either fighter.
If the UFC fight ends in a majority draw, the bettor will also win if they bet that the fight will end via decision.
However, with the ‘way of victory’, a bettor can also pick how a fight will end and attach a fighter to the result. For example, if someone bets on fighter A to win via decision, and the fight ends in a majority draw (decision), the bettor will lose because fighter A didn’t win.
3. Round the fight finishes
This UFC bet allows the bettor to pick which round the fight will finish in. Round-picking odds are often much higher because they’re much harder to win.
Bettors can also choose a fighter to win in a specific round, which further increases the odds. Odds can be further increased by picking how (method of victory) a fighter will win in a specific round.
4. Finish or Scorecards (Distance)
This UFC bet allows bettors to wager a yes or no bet on whether the fight will finish inside the distance, or whether it’ll go to the judge’s scorecards.
If a fight features more aggressive fighters with a lot of finishes, the odds of the fight finishing inside the distance are low, while the odds of the fight going to a decision are much higher. The opposite is the case if a UFC fight features two less aggressive fighters with more decision victories than finishes.
5. Over or Under
Another popular UFC bet, ‘over or under’ allows the bettor to pick whether a fight will finish before or after a given round. The round options are usually 1.5, and 2.5, and for title fights 3.5 and 4.5 are included.
In MMA and the UFC, the .5 actually refers to the time in a round, rather than the complete round.
So, if a bettor places a bet on a UFC fight to go over 2.5 rounds, they win the bet if, in the third round, it goes past 2 minutes 30 seconds, as UFC rounds are 5 minutes long. It doesn’t require the third round to end for the over 2.5 rounds bet to win.
How Do UFC Odds Work – Extras
What Is a UFC Proposition Bet?
A proposition bet on the UFC is a bet which is independent of the final result and instead reliant on something happening or not inside the fight.
For example, over and under rounds are a proposition bet because it’s betting on an occurrence inside the fight.
Proposition bets are most widely available on sportsbooks because they’re riskier bets and how gambling companies make most of their money.
More straightforward bets such as fight outcomes are available with exchange betting. Exchange betting is gambling against other bettors, where the bookmaker (the gambling company) takes a small percentage of the profit.
What Happens to Any UFC Bets on a Fight Declared a No-contest?
A no-contest decision is considered a null and void result, meaning bets are returned to the bettor.
However, if a fight outcome is later changed to a no-contest, bets will not be reversed as the wager is determined by the initial outcome of the fight.
For example, Daniel Cormier vs Jon Jones 2 (UFC 214) resulted in a knockout win for Jones, and anyone betting on Jones to win would have won their bet.
However, three weeks after the event, the results of Jones’s pre-fight drug test came back positive for banned substances, and the fight was overturned to a no contest.
As too much time had passed since the initial result, the bet results remained the same as before the overturned no contest.
Therefore, It’s important to check the null and void rules with every betting site before you make a bet, as each betting agent will have slightly different rules. For example, null and void payouts may be dependent on the time passed after the initial event.
The Bottom Line
So, ‘how do UFC odds work’?
UFC odds work in three different ways. There are American odds, decimal odds, and fractional odds. Of the three, decimal odds are by far the easiest to understand and should be used by everyone who bets often and wants to make the process simpler.
They’re the best odds for UFC betting as they show the total return and require a simple multiplication of the stake amount with the odds displayed. If you want to see the profit instead of the total return, you simply remove 1 from the betting odds displayed.
