The most recent UFC event had no competition from the NBA or NHL due to the fact that neither league scheduled playoff games last Friday. In addition, boxing’s biggest fight was slated for Saturday and garnered most of the weekend’s sports betting headlines by ending with one of the most controversial endings in years, as Timothy Bradley somehow scored a split decision victory over Manny Pacquiao for the WBO welterweight title. While many who wagered on that fight are still trying to get over that shocking result, here’s a breakdown of how they fared with their MMA betting compared to boxing… (based on closing fight odds, winner in bold) Same night in boxing: Scott Sigmon +1100 ($1,218 on 11 bets) vs. Kelly Pavlik -2000 ($222 on 6 bets) Shawn Hawk +475 ($0 on 0 bets) vs. Eleider Alvarez -650 ($246 on 2 bets) Saturday night in boxing: Timothy Bradley +340 ($32,254 on 223 bets) vs. Manny Pacquiao -520 ($84,562 on 984 bets) UFC on FX 3: Sean Pierson +145 ($840 on 22 bets) vs. Jake Hecht -175 ($648 on 22 bets) Bernardo Magalhaes +215 ($114 on 4 bets) vs. Henry Martinez -275 ($4,598 on 87 bets) Caio Magalhaes +105 ($620 on 16 bets) vs. Buddy Roberts -135 ($1,257 on 52 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 13 bets, Several Bookmakers players won $298 Justin Salas +110 ($1,636 on 41 bets) vs. Tim Means -130 ($1,209 on 38 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 2 bets, Several Bookmakers players won $90 Dustin Pague +130 ($3,651 on 25 bets) vs. Jared Papazian -160 ($4,201 on 178 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 5 bets, Several Bookmakers players won $190 Matt Grice +115 ($14,888 on 67 bets) vs. Leonard Garcia -145 ($7,545 on 84 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 37 bets, Several Bookmakers players won $381 Seth Baczynski EVEN ($16,598 on 125 bets) vs. Lance Benoist -130 ($9,574 on 59 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 48 bets, Several Bookmakers players on $706 Carlos Eduardo Rocha +190 ($9,949 on 142 bets) vs. Mike Pierce -240 ($19,065 on 201 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 29 bets, Several Bookmakers players won $105 Eddie Wineland +145 ($6,845 on 102 bets) vs. Scott Jorgensen -175 ($30,256 on 312 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 66 bets, Several Bookmakers house won $495 Josh Neer +160 ($5,687 on 125 bets) vs. Mike Pyle -200 ($13,503 on 221 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 25 bets, Several Bookmakers house won $1,361 Charlie Brenneman +150 ($14,860 on 91 bets) vs. Erick Silva -180 ($24,819 on 249 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 33 bets, Several Bookmakers players on $139 Ian McCall EVEN ($16,241 on 421 bets) vs. Demetrious Johnson -130 ($45,265 on 166 bets) In-Progress Betting Result: 106 bets, Several Bookmakers house won $607 With virtually no competition from other sports, UFC on FX 3 fared much better than the TUF 15 Finale the week before. For example, the main event on the TUF 15 Finale card between welterweights Jake Ellenberger and Martin Kampmann saw a total of $21,335 in betting action while two other main card bouts each saw a little more than $24k wagered. Last week, three of the fighters on the UFC on FX 3 main card saw more money bet on them alone (Jorgensen, Silva and Johnson) with all three of their bouts generating more than $37k apiece. Jorgensen’s second-round knockout loss to Wineland was named Fight of the Night and also proved to be the most costly for bettors as more than 3x the bets and more than 4x the amount of wagers came in on him. Wineland was one of five underdogs to pull off upsets on the night in 12 fights overall, with the biggest wins for bettors coming on Grice and Baczynski, as in-progress wagering also aided their profits. In-progress wagering later saw Several Bookmakers rake in profits in three of the last four bouts on the main card, including the largest amount resulting from the Knockout of the Night when Pyle ended his fight with Neer at 4:56 of the first round. Pyle appeared to be hurt just prior to the KO, prompting bettors to pile on Neer. But Pyle later admitted he was playing possum, which helped him surprise his opponent and finish Neer off with a furious rally that barely beat the bell.
