Starting In 2023, MMA Fans in Ohio Can Legally Bet On UFC
Legal sports betting opens up in Ohio on January 1st, 2023. MMA fans will be able to wager on betting markets surrounding combat sports (and others) for all events in 2023 and beyond in the state.
MMA and combat sports fans can lock in welcome offers as several sportsbooks have already received approval from the Ohio Casino Control Commision.
Below, we take a look at how MMA fans can wager on the UFC in Ohio, and details on how to take advantage.
MMA and Combat Sports Sign Up and Welcome Bonuses Available In Ohio
That list includes BetMGM Ohio. Click here to take advantage of our bonus code at BetMGM Ohio. BetMGM Ohio offers either free bet insurance of up to $1000 on the first bet, or just a $200 free bet with few conditions. Take advantage of either by simply signing up and depositing at least $10. To activate the free bet insurance, place a first wager of up to $1000. If it is a win, just cash the proceeds and that is it! If the wager loses, BetMGM will credit your account with risk free bets in the amount of the original wager up to the maximum of $1000.
As long as the first bet is $50 or greater, the free bets get divided into five separate free bets each equal to 20% of the original bet. A losing $300 first bet results in five $60 free bets for example. First bets under $50 just get the free bet in one shot.
Sign up is easy. Click here and then enter standard basic info when prompted, such as name, email, mobile phone, physical address, date of birth and the last four digits of your Social.
Once the account is set and verified as controlled by an Ohio resident aged 21 or over, players can deposit funds and begin to place wagers. BetMGM Ohio sportsbook takes deposits from a variety of sources, including major credit and debit cards, online banking, bank wire transfers, and PayPal. Depositors can use prepaid Play+ and GameOn cards and BetMGM gift cards, visit a PayNearMe site or deposit directly at the cage of affiliated casinos and racinos in Ohio.
All of the legal sportsbooks in Ohio will post betting markets on major UFC and Bellator events and boxing cards. The types of bets offered may vary from book to book, but Ohio players will find all of the following.
Moneyline Betting
These are just straight bets on the winner of the fight and are the easiest and most popular combat sports bets. Books post money lines on fights coming up soon and on big UFC cards or boxing matches in the future. Basic UFC money lines are two-way lines. If the fight ends in a draw, the bet is a “push” and the bet cancels.
For example, DraftKings has a money line up on the Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski UFC Lightweight Championship fight on February 11th at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia. It is Makhachev -305 vs +255 on Volkanovski. It is an interesting matchup as both fighters currently hold titles, with Makhachev the lightweight champ and Volkanovski the featherweight belt holder moving up in weight to try to grab a second title. Ohio residents can soon place wagers here, as well as on another big bout on the card, a middleweight battle between former champion Robert Whittaker and former title challenger Paulo Costa. It is currently -265 on Whittaker vs +225 on Costa.
Boxing two-way money line bets are similar to UFC bets. For example, FanDuel already has odds up on the Josh Taylor vs Jake Catterall WBO light welterweight championship rematch. Champion Taylor took the first bout on a debated decision and lists as the favorite at -240 vs. +186 on Catterall in the rematch set for February 5th in Glasgow.
Total Rounds
The legal sportsbooks all post Over/Under odds of the fight length on all major fights. Typical UFC fights have three rounds of five minutes each, and the betting markets predominantly use 2.5 rounds as the Over/Under with the price on each side as the variable. Think of it like the Run Line in MLB that generally default to 1.5 runs.
Draftkings lists total rounds on the December 17th lightweight bout between Arman Tsarukyan and Damir Ismagulov in Vegas at 2.5 rounds with the Overpriced at -265 vs +215 on the Under. The rounds are five minutes long, so an ending at exactly 2:30 of the third-round results in a push.
The sportsbooks also post total rounds markets on boxing matches, with a more variable total as the rounds are shorter in length (three minutes) and longer in quantity.
Total rounds do not post until near the fight night on either boxing or MMA cards.
Round Betting
Bettors can wager on both the winner and the round of victory. Here are the round betting markets on DraftKings for the December 17th Tsarukyan vs Ismagulov match.
- Tsarukyan win in Round 1 +600
- Tsarukyan win in Round 2 +850
- Tsarukyan win in Round 3 +1100
- Tsarukyan win by decision +130
- Ismagulov win in Round 1 +1200
- Ismagulov win in Round 2 +2000
- Ismagulov win in Round 3 +2800
- Ismagulov win by decision +240
- Draw +5000
Different books have different rules on round betting. Sometimes a “draw” option is not included and every bet loses. There are also cases where a fighter withdraws between rounds, in which case the book generally treats it as if the fight ended in the previous round.
Boxing matches have similar bet options, albeit with more rounds to bet on and more variations on the bets. For example, BetMGM lists individual round bets on the 10 round Steven Butler vs Joshua Conley bout on December 16th plus Round Group betting on two round pairings. They price Butler to win in rounds 5-6 at +500 and with a similar bet on Conley at +2800 e.g.
Method of Victory
Have an opinion on the winner and how the fight will end and want to place some money on it? The books will post odds, like these at Draftkings on Tsarukyan vs Ismagulov.
- Tsarukyan by knockout(KO)/technical knockout (TKO) or disqualification (DQ) +350
- Tsarukyan by submission +750
- Tsarukyan by decision +130
- Draw +5000
- Ismagulov by KO/TKO/DQ +750
- Ismagulov by submission +2800
- Ismagulov by decision +240
Props
The sportsbooks all post odd on props for combat sports, but the offerings vary widely. A common one is a simple “Will the Fight go the Distance” wager. BetMGM has “Yes” on the Butler-Conley boxing match at +125 and “No” at -175. BetMGM also offers props on round betting which are like regular round betting markets minus picking the winner.
