Top UFC & MMA Betting Sites in Ontario
Join us as we’ll be going through exactly what you need to know about MMA betting, giving you expert insight on the best sports betting sites, MMA betting tips, information on UFC betting odds and more!
Betting on MMA has become big business alongside the sport’s growth, with fans hoping to place bets in multiple markets in various ways. Mixed Martial Arts has been one of the fastest-growing sports in the world over the past decade, with fighters competing for promotions such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship/UFC, Bellator MMA, ONE FC, Professional Fighters League/PFL, Cage Warriors, RIZIN and KSW
Best MMA/UFC Betting Sites in Ontario
Rank
Top Features
Payments
Secure Link
- Live streaming
- Huge variety of bets
- Easy site navigation
- Huge variety of bets
- Some of the best odds
- Esports
- Major sporting events
- Odds on small sports
- Huge variety of bets
- Large selection of bets & odds
- Fast payouts
- Impressive range of bets
- Great odds
- Huge variety of bets
- Cashout
- Wide range of betting options
- Major sporting events
- Live Bets
Live Betting
Being able to wager on live fights is an essential part of the experience when it comes to MMA betting, so the sites we’ve looked at take this into account so that fans have selections to suit their needs when it comes to live betting on-site.
Mobile Bet
Again looking at the experience for the bettor, having a quality way for fans to bet on MMA via a mobile app is extremely important, and we’ve paid particular attention to this when considering the sites we believe you should be looking at for your deposits.
Customer Support
Having good 24-hour customer support is another essential component of having a viable sports betting site. We’ve made sure to include the sports sites that take this element of the job into account on top of everything else!
Quick Winning Bet Payouts
When you’re placing MMA bets, it’s good to know that you’re using a sportsbook that will be able to offer quick winning bet payouts, something we have also taken into account in our reviews of the best sites and betting apps currently available in UFC betting in Canada.
Overall Reputation
Probably the most important aspect of our research has been the overall reputation of different bookmakers, as the popularity of a sportsbook and the nature of its business model in terms of strategy, page experience and betting platform and how it contributes to a company’s reputation are absolutely paramount when looking for the best MMA betting sites around.
π We Compared Sportsbooks With MMA Betting: What’s the Best?
For your convenience, we have made a side-by-side comparison of the top five sportsbooks with MMA betting in Ontario. Here are our findings!
Unibet
In terms of the standards that you would expect from a sportsbook, Unibet has you covered when it comes to UFC and MMA. Outright winners and in-play are the two leading offers here, but aside from that, there isn’t a massive amount on offer for bettors, with prop bets not being available (as of writing). There are some Futures offers available, but these are relegated to only ‘who will be the champion?’ of a particular weight class by the end of the calendar year. In terms of MMA outside of the UFC, Unibet doesn’t actually have much in that department, either. As of writing, only the kickboxing promotion GLORY appears to be an option if you’re looking beyond the octagon. The basic format of the odds here is a standard Moneyline, so if you prefer that style of odds, then Unibet could be an option for you.
BetMGM
BetMGM differs from Unibet with a British-style fractional odds system. With a fairly user-friendly layout that clearly states upcoming events to bet on, it is better than the previous entry. One of the extra dividends BetMGM has going for it is that there are prop bets available, with a number of different selections available for the latest upcoming event. The ‘All Wagers’ section of the platform for an individual bout is far more comprehensive than seen on Unibet, with options such as Gone in 60 seconds (could a fighter get the KO to win inside a minute), round betting, will the fight go the distance? and how will the fight finish? offering bettors far more different types of victory odds to consider before submitting their deposit. Unfortunately, BetMGM sports does not appear to provide MMA betting odds for any events outside of the UFC currently for bettors in Canada.
LeoVegas
Another option for bettors is LeoVegas, and this site differs from Unibet and BetMGM as it offers decimal/European odds as the basic format of odds. In terms of the layout of the desktop site, it is pretty clean and easy to navigate, which is a plus, but aside from that, the actual offering on show isn’t fantastic. Much like Unibet, LeoVegas sportsbook currently only appears to offer outright winners and the chance for some Futures bets to be made, again with those looking solely at who will be the UFC Champion in a specific weight division by the end of the calendar year.
Royal Panda
Royal Panda has a very similar platform to LeoVegas, with the option of being able to choose between decimal, American and fractional odds in the layout. The current options for bettors are again limited, with only outright winners being available on the site as of writing. Again, Futures is also an option when it comes to betting on Royal Panda, with the options being who will be the UFC Champion in a certain weight division by the end of the calendar year.
BetVictor
The biggest strength of the BetVictor proposition is the site layout itself, as it is incredibly intuitive and has a clear layout in which you can peruse the different odds currently available. Like BetMGM, BetVictor offers a great range of different types of bets and odds for fans to check out before a contest actually takes place. Some of the offers available as of writing include outright winner, method of victory, round betting, will the fight go the distance, total rounds over/under and one of their unique specials: Fight To End Within A Minute (00:00-00:59). Unfortunately, BetVictor sports does not appear to offer MMA betting odds for any promotions outside of the UFC currently for bettors in Canada.
In terms of the current offers that we have listed, BetVictor and BetMGM appear to stand head and shoulders above the rest of the pack currently. Hopefully, both sites will start to offer more odds for MMA promotions outside the Ultimate Fighting Championship in the coming months.
π Difference Between MMA & UFC
Still, many people do not know the difference between MMA and UFC, as they’re terms that can easily get muddled up if you don’t know the sport. It is a very similar situation to WWE and Pro Wrestling, where they’re essentially one and the same, except one is the biggest brand name (WWE) in the sport (Pro Wrestling).
What Is MMA?
MMA stands for ‘Mixed Martial Arts,’ and this is the standardized name for the sport across a number of different events. Mixed Martial Arts bouts are held either in a ring or a cage, with the majority of the biggest promotions in the world having their events take place in their own stylized arena, such as UFC’s Octagon, PFL’s Smart Cage or ONE FC’s Circle cage. There are hundreds of different events taking place across the globe on a monthly basis, with some being broadcast to millions of homes.
MMA features a number of standardized rules that are enforced by different sporting leagues and companies, such as the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Fighters in mixed martial arts tend to have a strong base and training in Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, Greco-Roman Wrestling, Muay Thai Kickboxing and Boxing, although many also bring different styles from their country of origin, such as UFC legend Lyoto Machida, who was a Karate practitioner.
What Is UFC?
UFC is the biggest MMA promotion in the world. Known as the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the company is fronted by UFC President Dana White. The UFC is based in Las Vegas, Nevada, and was initially founded by Art Davie and Brazilian martial artist Rorion Gracie. UFC’s first event took place in 1993, and the premise of the initial shows would pit martial artists from various disciplines against each other to determine which was the ‘ultimate’ martial art in a real fight situation. The sport and UFC promotion have grown exponentially in the following decades, with Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, alongside Dana White, purchasing the company in January 2001 for only $2 million US Dollars and subsequently creating Zuffa, LLC.
It wasn’t until the creation of The Ultimate Fighter reality television series that things really began to take off for the company, as the format of finding the next UFC star was a massive hit in 2005 on Spike TV. The first-ever TUF finale featured a sensational bout between Forrest Griffin and Stephen Bonnar that is regarded as one of the most important bouts in the sport’s history, drawing a massive rating for the television broadcast and bringing new fans to the burgeoning sport. Endeavor bought a controlling interest in the company in 2016 for a reported $4 Billion US Dollars. Endeavor would eventually purchase the company in total in 2021, with MMA Fighting reporting at the time: “When Endeavor closed a deal to obtain a controlling interest in the UFC back in 2016 for just over $4 billionβ¦This new buyout will now give Endeavor 100 per cent controlling interest over the UFC…”
What Are the Differences Between “Numbered” UFC & UFC Fight Night?
The UFC has two different styles of fight cards, with these being numbered PPV events and UFC Fight Night shows. Numbered events are shown in North America on PPV, with ESPN+ being the current home for fans to check out all of the action. As you’d expect, the Pay-Per-View events feature the biggest names in the company and the biggest fights that the UFC has to offer. UFC Fight Night events are shows that take place for fans to watch live on television, with fans in Canada being able to watch the full fight card on TSN. Although these shows are technically ‘free’ to watch, they often feature top names from the different UFC weight classes on offer across the roster.
Although some would probably expect that the numbered events would be far superior, it is sometimes actually the UFC Fight Night cards that produce some of the best fights of the year as up-and-coming competitors strive to make a name for themselves inside the octagon. They will often pull out all of the stops to try and make a splash among the fans and UFC management.
π MMA & UFC Bets Types
UFC betting odds and markets, in general, can offer fans the opportunity to place their stake on a number of different outcomes on any given fight night, and we’ll go through some of the options a sportsbook may give you below:
Victory Method
There are multiple ways a fighter can beat their opponent to win an MMA bout, including knockout (KO/TKO), submission or decision (be that split or unanimous). Betting on how a fight might finish could be lucrative, especially if you’ve got a good knowledge of the competitors in the octagon for a particular bout.
Outright Winner
Outright Winner is the most common betting type when it comes to MMA and UFC bouts, much like boxing. A bettor has more or less a 50/50 chance of getting the outcome they want, with the chances of a draw or a no contest being relatively low. If you’re new to MMA betting, then this will likely be your first port of call when it comes to actually putting down a bet, and props may be something you can consider later down the line.
Moneyline
The Moneyline is something you’ll see quite a lot on UFC.com, especially when looking at the individual fight cards. The Moneyline will give you information on who is the favourite and who is the underdog in a fight. For example, the favourite will likely appear with a + followed by a number and the underdog will be listed with a – followed by a number. For example, the matchup between Yair Rodriguez and Josh Emmett at UFC 284 listed Rodriguez as the favourite at -165 and Emmett as the underdog at +140.
Total Rounds β Over/Under Rounds
A total rounds bout sounds exactly like it is, with bettors trying to determine which round a fight could end at a given event. Usually, you’ll find one or two different picks, with over 2.5 or under 2.5 being the most common way to bet on a standard 5-round Championship or Main Event fight. For more standard fights on the undercard, you’ll see an over 1.5 or under 1.5 bet being the most common way to make a total rounds bet on a 3-round contest.
Parlays
A parlay bet, also known as an accumulator, means that a bettor has made a few different bets and tied them together to create a chance to earn a higher amount overall. Although the payout will be significantly more than individual bets, it’s worth noting that if you’re incorrect on just one of your predictions, you’ll lose out on the total bet. So if you’re looking at doing this, just be aware that the risks are higher, and you could lose out.
Prop Bets
A prop bet refers to a wager that is placed on a fight that does not necessarily affect the overall outcome of the fight itself. One of the more popular prop bets in UFC/MMA is ‘will the fighters touch gloves?’ as this is a common tradition in MMA history amongst fighters who have respect for each other in the cage. If you know that the two men or women competing aren’t exactly fans of each other, then it might be worth betting against them doing so!
Futures
Futures bets see bettors making a prediction on what could happen at some point in the future. Examples of this would be ‘Conor McGregor wins a UFC title in 2023’ or ‘Francis Ngannou returns to the UFC in 2023.’ Whilst the two above are not necessarily likely to happen, they would probably be available with some great odds on a number of different sportsbooks.
Live Betting
Betting ‘in play’ as a market has become a big element of MMA and UFC betting in the past few years. If a bettor feels confident that they can make a pick during the course of a fight, such as a competitor winning in a certain round based on what they’re seeing inside the octagon, then this can be a great value way to bet during an event.
π― Top MMA Events to Bet On Besides UFC
As mentioned, the UFC is the biggest MMA promotion in the world, but there are a number of fantastic companies producing world-class talent that you can watch and potentially bet on right now, including:
Bellator
Bellator MMA is looked at by many as the number 2 in terms of global MMA powerhouses, and for a good reason, because the company boasts some incredible fighters on its roster. The company was first founded in 2008, with the inaugural event taking place in April 2009 in a tournament format, which continued until the final season in 2014. Bellator follows a similar format to the UFC, with bouts taking place in a cage instead of a ring and judges being stationed at the cage side to determine a winner should one not be determined within the time limit and weight divisions based on recent performance and standings. Names such as Vitaly Minakov, Andrey Koreshkov, Eddie Alvarez, Ben Askren, Ryan Bader, Fedor Emelianenko, Douglas Lima, Patricio Pitbull and Michael Chandler have had plenty of incredible bouts for the promotion, and stars continue to rise through the ranks in 2023.
π‘ Smart MMA Betting Tips
Betting on mixed martial arts is a very different prospect from betting on a sport such as boxing, as it combines a number of different fighting styles to showcase some of the most exciting combat sports on the planet.
- Having knowledge of a fighter’s strengths ahead of a match in the octagon is extremely important when deciding how to place your stake.
- Knowing a fighter’s background before placing a bet is a smart way to ensure that you’re getting the most for your money. You have to ask yourself questions like, “has this fighter fought in this weight class before? Does one of the fighters have a Brazilian Ju-Jitsu background, meaning they will have an advantage on the ground? What is the level of opponents that they have fought in the past?”
Asking these sorts of questions and ensuring that you can determine the answer is a fantastic way to ensure you’re getting ahead of the game before you’ve even decided to get into this type of sports betting.
How to Read MMA Betting Lines
There are three different types of betting lines that you will need to be aware of, with these being fractional (British) odds, decimal (European) odds and the previously mentioned Moneyline (American) odds. The American system we have already covered earlier in this article, with a – indicating a favourite and a + indicating an underdog. The “fractional” or British style of odds shows the ratio between the amount staked by the bookmakers and the bettor. For example, a line of 6/1 means the bookmaker’s stake is six times the amount the bettor has wagered. So if you win, you’d be making six times the amount of the wagered stake! The “decimal” or European odds depict the stake bettors win for every $1 they wagered.
β Watch Out For These MMA Betting Mistakes
Common mistakes bettors can make when it comes to MMA are incredibly similar to those in other combat sports, especially boxing.
Not Knowing Skill Sets
Not knowing the skillsets of the fighters you’re betting on is the primary mistake, as while you might be confident that the 11-0 fighter getting in the cage with an 8-5 opponent should steamroll them, the fighting styles of the two competitors may well give the advantage to the 8-5 opponent.
Not Knowing MMA Rules
Another big betting mistake that people can make is simply not knowing the rules of MMA, as there is still a preconception amongst some people that mixed martial arts or cage fighting is just a barbaric free-for-all, which isn’t the case at all.
Completely Trusting Media Personalities
Trusting those who have fought in the octagon and had years of experience can be a double-edged sword. If you look at someone like a former UFC champ-champ and well-renowned member of the UFC commentary team in the modern day, then you’d think that their analysis would be a dead-cert when it came to predictions…but that’s not always the case. Much like other fighters and people in general, these personalities have their biases regarding rivals, teammates and colleagues. It’s worth bearing in mind that every analyst has a personal bias that might cloud their judgement.
Betting Based on Personality or Fame
If you haven’t bet on MMA bouts before, this can be an easy trap to fall into. If you think that knowing the name Conor McGregor means you’re in a position to bet on him, think again. Yes, McGregor can be regarded as one of the greatest fighters in UFC history, having secured his own champ-champ status at Lightweight and Featherweight, but two straight losses against Dustin Poirier have meant that he is clearly not the fighter he once was. If you’re looking at getting into betting on UFC and MMA fights, then make sure that you don’t get lured into the fool’s game of betting on personality or fame.
Not Considering Injuries
You must ensure you’ve got a good grasp of the fighters competing and their status in recent injuries. Fighters can sustain many different injuries that make a huge difference to how they compete, and major surgery can irreparably change how a competitor actually competes inside the cage or ring. Although injuries are not always known publicly, it’s easy to find information on fighters through reputable news sites. It is essential to get a grasp of a fighter’s history when it comes to time outside of fighting to establish what level they might be competing at.
Completely Disregarding Underdogs
Only betting on favourites in fights and not considering the potential impact of an underdog is another way that bettors can ensure that they’ll probably lose their stake quickly. This goes back to the advice about skill sets, as although a fighter might be world-class in one or two different areas, there are always going to be areas that they aren’t quite as strong in that an underdog opponent could potentially exploit and use to their advantage.
Not Managing your Bankroll
This advice goes beyond MMA betting because if you do not manage your bankroll correctly and only bet what you can afford to lose, then that can be detrimental to your mental health and your pocket.
β MMA and UFC Betting FAQs
Mixed Martial Arts is a sport that features two competitors in a particular weight class competing to declare the winner over a set number of rounds. MMA fighters can win a fight via KO/TKO, submission and/or decision (split or unanimous).
Bettors based in Ontario, Canada, are able to bet on Ultimate Fighting Championship/UFC events and other select MMA fights.
How odds are presented, all depends on the individual sportsbook, as they can be presented in the decimal (European), Moneyline (American) and fractional (English) formats.
Again it is all dependent on which format the betting site is presenting its odds, be it decimal (European), Moneyline (American) or fractional (English).
The official UFC site and broadcasts for the Ultimate Fighting Championship present the odds for fights based on the Moneyline format. If a fighter has a + next to the number on their odds, they’re predicted to be the underdog for a fight, whereas the favourite for the bout will have a – next to the number on their odds.
From our research, the three best sites for UFC betting in 2023 in Canada are BetVictor and BetMGM.
The best way to know which fighter to bet on in any given bout is to do thorough research beforehand on the records, level of injuries, success in the sport, overall stats, the level of competition that they have competed against and their range of skills across multiple combats and martial arts disciplines.
π More Betting Guides on Popular Sports
Jake is an SEO-minded Combat Sports, Gaming and Pro Wrestling writer and successful Editor in Chief. He has more than ten years of experience covering mixed martial arts, pro wrestling and gaming across a number of publications.
