John Ford | October 5, 2020 | Updated on: December 4th, 2023
Although Bellator MMA is not as big as UFC, fights are still pretty massive affairs drawing in hundreds of thousands of viewers. Officially, it is the second-largest combat promotion in the United States and features many elite fighters, including the likes of Patrício Freire, Douglas Lima, Vadim Nemkov, and Andrey Koreshkov.
Needless to say, Bellator odds are widely-sought after by MMA junkies. Unfortunately, most sports betting sites don’t offer lines on Bellator fights. But we’ve found a few that do, including MyBookie and XBet below.
A great thing about betting on fights in a lesser-known promotion is that sometimes you stand a solid chance of profiting on poorly drawn lines with some sharp bets.
If you would like to find out more about betting on Bellator MMA – one of the fastest-growing mixed martial arts promoters in the United States, stick around. Below we have created the ultimate guide to Bellator fight odds, where we look at the betting lines available on events and tips to keep in mind when making wagers.
We also list a bunch of online gambling sites with some of the best MMA odds available, so that you can start placing bets as soon as you feel ready. So, read on and get started today!
Where to Bet on Bellator
Bellator Predictions
Bellator Links
- Where to Bet on Bellator
- Bellator Predictions
- Popular Bellator Betting Lines
- Bellator MMA Betting Tips
- Bellator Fight Odds – FAQs
Popular Bellator Betting Lines
Generally, there aren’t as many betting lines on Bellator fights as on UFC fights due to the promotion’s smaller audience. However, all of the most popular lines are still available, including:
Moneyline
A moneyline bet is a bet on the winner of the match. It is probably the simplest bet you can make on an MMA fight and the type of wager most people associate with sports betting.
Sometimes, moneylines aren’t that profitable if a strong favorite is fighting an underdog. Unfortunately, the spread bets aren’t available on MMA fights, so you may have to look at other betting options to make more money.
Method of Victory
A method of victory bet is focused on how a fighter wins a bout. There are usually five possible options available:
- Decision
- Knockout
- Technical knockout
- Submission
- Draw
Generally, you can also further specialize in these bets. For example, with decision bets, you can select whether the decision will be made unanimously or by a majority vote.
Total Rounds
A total rounds bet is similar to over/under bets seen in team sports. Here you bet whether the total number of rounds in a fight will come under a line set by a sportsbook or go over it.
A Bellator fight has five rounds. Statistically, most fights on the undercard at least make it to the second round. Championship fights tend to go on a little bit longer and average just under three rounds per fight.
Round of Victory
You can bet on which round a fighter will win. For example, you can bet on a fight to end in Round 4. Usually, many people combine this bet with the Method of Victory bet to improve the odds and potential payouts.
Parlays
Unfortunately, there aren’t many props on Bellator fights, which is usually the case with lesser-known sports. However, you can still parlay bets if you are looking for something interesting.
A parlay is a combination bet where you add two or more wagers to a single bet slip. Your payout is dependent on predicting all of the wagers on the bet slip correctly.
Bellator MMA Betting Tips
Are you new to betting on Bellator fights? Well, we have got some general MMA betting tips that could help you make better wagers from the get-go:
Focus on Undercard Fights
As we mentioned above, Bellator isn’t as popular as the UFC. Some sportsbooks don’t even offer lines on the promotion because they are afraid of making bad lines that bettors could exploit.
So, when you do find a sportsbook that offers Bellator lines, hone in on the lines with lesser-known fighters. Oddsmakers are more likely to make errors here due to being unfamiliar with the people involved and their capabilities.
Thus, there is some opportunity to find a value bet if you are lucky, and you do your research effectively.
Bet Against Former UFC Fighters
Before we explain this advice, we need to say that you need to use it on a case by case basis. Generally, many former UFC fighters join Bellator, particularly if they have had unsuccessful runs in the UFC. We’re talking about your John Alessios (0-5 in the UFC), not your Ryan Baders (20-5 in the UFC).
These fighters usually get a lot of hype because they come from a bigger promotion with supposedly the world’s best fighters. However, if they weren’t successful in UFC, chances are they won’t be successful against Bellator’s top talent either.
So, research fighters before blindly placing bets on either party. Sometimes, you may find some good value bets in betting against fighters who have made the jump between promotions, but not always.
Research Fighting Styles
MMA is a sport filled with combat styles and people prone to different weaknesses. Some fighters may focus on boxing, whereas others may be more traditional Greco-Roman wrestlers. Thus, some fighters will try to go for knockouts, and others will try to get submissions.
Focus on analyzing the fighting style of a competitor as well as their weaknesses. In this way, some betting opportunities may become clear to you.
Bellator Fight Odds – FAQs
Yes, you can bet on Bellator. Not all sportsbooks offer betting odds on fights in the promotion, though. We recommend checking out legal online sports betting sites such as Bovada, MyBookie, and XBet for lines. Usually, you will have to look closer to an event as oddsmakers tend to draw up these lines closer to events because fighters are lesser-known.
Bellator seemingly pays its athletes more than UFC does. The promotion gives a higher percentage of its revenue to its fighters than the UFC. While the UFC may have some big stars who get big paychecks, this is not the case for most of the athletes on the payroll who make up the undercard, which is why many land up moving to Bellator later on in their careers.
Lyoto Machida is the highest-paid fighter in Bellator at the moment. He earns $200,000 in guaranteed money per fight.
It is not clear how much Bellator MMA is worth, but it is estimated that the promotion could be around about $200 million, far below UFC’s $4.2 billion evaluation.
UFC is seen as more serious than Bellator. The greatest athletes in the sport join the UFC because they want to fight the best opponents to claim they really are the best. They also get more media attention.
Bellator is seen as a smaller promotion but has proven to be in favor of the fighters by being less controlling and paying out their athletes more.
Douglas Lima is thought to be the best fighter in Bellator. He has won the Bellator Welterweight World Championship three times, and his professional record sits at 32-7.
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