Octagon Betting

Mixed Martial Arts has quickly grown from a ‘fight club’ to a respectable sport, for handicappers at Bodog to wager upon. It seems like every week, a new star is born, as a champion is dethroned. But whether you watch MMA religiously or you are new to the sport, you are probably wondering what helps a fighter become a contender for a title? Today we will look at a few fighters in the UFC Middleweight Division that should expect a title fight in the near future.

Anderson Silva is the longest tenured champion in UFC history, as he has been the Middleweight king for nearly three years. In a couple of months, Silva will fight in a rematch with his toughest opponent Chael Sonnen. Sonnen is the only Middleweight to last nearly an entire fight with Silva, as at several points in the first encounter Sonnen appeared to have the advantage. But after Silva and Sonnen face off in July, who will face the winner? Here are the best odds on a couple of fighters that should be next in line.

Vitor Belfort v Wanderlei Silva – The upcoming Belfort v Silva matchup presents two Middleweight fan favorites auditioning for an opportunity to fight Anderson Silva or Chael Sonnen. Belfort is younger and hungrier, as Wanderlei has lost his last couple of fights. Meanwhile, Belfort is riding a seven fight win streak, as his only defeat in the last eight fights was to the aforementioned Anderson Silva. Belfort believes he has what it takes to be given a rematch and win.

Mark Munoz, and the winner of Michael Bisping v Tim Boetsch – All three fighters are ranked, two, three, and four on every Middleweight top five list. Munoz in fact was supposed to fight Sonnen but injured his arm, leading to Bisping filling in and narrowly losing a judge’s decision to Sonnen. Tim Boetsch is the least known of the three fighters, but has been just as dominant, as his come from behind win over Yushin Okami indicated. In our opinion, Munoz will get the shot, because he was riding a wave of momentum prior to his injury.

The world of sports is forever changing according to a recent look at Bodog. Gone are the day’s of a ‘big four major sports’ as sports such as the MMA which were considered for diehard handicappers only are now receiving a lot of attention from the bookies. On paper, MMA is one of the most brutal combat sports, as many different styles have been created, for one opponent to defeat another. Today, we will look at why certain fighting styles increase the odds of winning over others.

In order to make an exciting fight, promoters will have two fighters with completely opposite styles fight one another. On the rare occasion that two fighters of the same style meet in the octagon, the fight is either extremely exciting or extremely boring. For example, if two fighters that use a striking style called Muay Thai meet in the ring, then the fight will be exciting. Meanwhile, if two fighters that use the same style known as Judo meet in the octagon, the fight will be boring, because it focuses in grappling.

The most exciting style of UFC MMA fighting is called Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, which focuses on grappling and submission holds as well as some striking. Fighters famous for using this style are current Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva and Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones. The style allows the fighter to come across as more complete. In other words, the fighter can stand up and exchange strikes with a Muay Thai fighter, or they can take the fight to the ground with a Judo fighter. Depending on the size of the opponent, BJJ can be used as a defense mechanism against bigger opponents. At the same time, it can be used as an overwhelming technique when thwarting smaller competition.

Over the last decade, no sport has grown in popularity more quickly then MMA. Led by the UFC, MMA pits two combatants against one another in an octagon shaped ring, with the intention of one fighter gaining the victory over the other. Throughout its illustrious tenor, bettors have seen many different styles of MMA portrayed during matches. One such style that increases a fighters odds of winning is called Sambo. Today we will look at how Sambo has become affective in the ring.

Sambo is a Russian mixed martial art, used by many Eastern European fighters. The name Sambo translates to self defense without weapons. In other words, when a fight breaks out, a person familiar with Sambo techniques can thwart any enemy without using a weapon. The art of Sambo was originally created by the KGB, as their spies often had to go undercover and eliminate specific targets. As baseball betting enthusiasts know, a different style or technique can be all the difference needed to gain an edge over an opponent

There are three main types of Sambo used by MMA fighters, including, sport, combat and freestyle. Sport Sambo is often confused with Olympic wrestling, as the fighter is allowed to use leg locks and choke holds in order to gain an advantage on their opponent. Sambo also requires the use of grappling and throw and groundwork and submissions. In other words, when you see a fighter drop to the ground and put their opponent in a kimura arm bar, they are using sport Sambo.

Combat Sambo is more of a modern MMA technique, in that it is a stand up technique. Often confused with boxing, combat Sambo requires the use of strikes and kicks to thwart an opponent. For example, when Junior Dos Santos knocked out Cain Velazquez, he was using a combat Sambo approach. This style often requires good agility and coordination.

For sports handicappers looking for another niche to wager upon beside March Madness betting lines, why not try your hand at MMA. Along with being the fastest growing sport in North America, there are many intricacies within the MMA sphere for bettors to try from an exercising perspective. For instance, Muay Thai, which is often confused with karate, is both an excellent workout and a style used by some of the best striking fighters in the UFC. Today we will look at how Muay Thai is applied in MMA.

Muay Thai is used by many of the world’s best mixed martial artists. Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones, Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva and former Strikeforce kingpin turned UFC star Alistair Overeem all use Muay Thai as their main style to combat opponents. The basic premise of Muay Thai is to use striking techniques such as kicking, punching, elbows, knees and clinching. In other words, most of the fighters you see who specialize in a stand up attack, are using forms of Muay Thai to combat opponents.

As we have seen with Jones, Silva and Overeem, the Muay Thai methods are effective in subduing opponents rather quickly. For example, in Overeem’s main event fight to crown a number one contender for the Heavyweight title, Overeem showed mainstream fight fans how good of a fighter he was, as he disposed of Brock Lesnar in short order. Overeem was able to use the defense tactics of anticipation and avoidance, as he seemed to have a counter for all of Lesnar’s attacks. Overeem was also able to squash his sports betting opponent, by using diagonal knees and rapid punches to overwhelm Brock Lesnar. For such a big man, Overeem had the agility you may see in a lighter weight class, thus making fans wonder if Muay Thai fighters hold an edge over those who use wrestling or BJJ.