UFC to Pass Boxing in Sports Betting Revenue

While mixed martial arts is very popular these days, I’m still surprised from time to time by just how much of a success it actually is. For example, according to the folks at leading sportsbook Bodog, it seems as though the UFC is now on the verge of surpassing boxing in terms of online betting revenue.

UFC 71, which featured the main event of Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell vs. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, drew a record audience and caused a huge spike in the amount of online betting for the sport. Since then, public interest, and that of sports bettors, has remained high.

According to the sportsbook manager for Bodog, “2007 will mark the first year that MMA handle will surpass boxing.” For those of you not familiar with betting jargon, the “handle” is the total amount of money taken for an event from wagering.

And the bigger the match, the more money that’s wagered. Jackson vs. Liddell accounted for two-thirds of the handle for UFC 71, while Rashad Evans vs. Tito Ortiz (a non-title fight) was responsible for a third of the UFC 73 handle.

With each passing event, MMA and sportsbook sites continue to see an increase in traffic. And while a highly anticipated boxing match like De La Hoya vs. Mayweather may still bring in monster revenue, boxing in general is getting left behind, in large part due to the utter blandness of the current heavyweight crop of fighters.

But in the end, boxing only has themselves to blame for the shift in power. For years they have been riddled with corruption and controversy, much of which can be blamed on the cartoonish-yet-devious Don King.

While veterans like Gatti, Hopkins and De La Hoya slug it out in overpriced pay-per-views that do little for the next generation of fighters, the UFC are masters of making someone into a star within a matter of months. This, and the fact that most UFC cards feature nine fights to a boxing pay-per-view’s two or three, have the sweet science on the ropes.

And when they finally hit the deck, one has to wonder if they’ll ever get back up?

For more articles on boxing and MMA, check out the following:

Gatti vs. Gomez - Fight Results

Cage Rage 22 and K-1 Hero’s - Fight Results

UFC to Pass Boxing in Sports Betting Revenue