Mixed Martial Arts or MMA has recently emerged as the most popular form of organized combat sports on the planet. There are literally hundreds of MMA matches in dozens of countries every weekend and some of the matches draw in the tens of thousands of fans. It has also become the most popular fight sport for top betting sites like bet olimp.
Mixed martial arts is a full contact sport where fighters incorporate a range of boxing styles to defeat an opponent. Matches are usually three five minute rounds and championship matches are five, five minute rounds.
The best fighters are those who are superior Thai boxers or strikers who can deliver blows with the fists, feet, shins and knees, and can wrestle or grapple effectively.
Fights are held in the men’s and women’s divisions based on weight classes which run from Strawweight that has a 115 lb. (52.2 kg) weight limit to Super Heavyweight which has no upper weight limit. Each division has a champion, and in some cases several champions at any given time.
There are many fight leagues around the world that present MMA matches and several like Bellator and Strikeforce have become quite successful. The most successful league by far however, remains the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Propelled by a steady stream of charismatic champions over the past twenty years, the UFC has taken the main spotlight in fight sports today.
The league has had some rough spots lately with some of its top fighters either retiring, in the case of Rhonda Rousey, being past their prime in the case of Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva, and the meteoric of one of their biggest stars Jon Jones who has never been defeated in the ring but has had serious issues with the law and with drug suspensions. Jones has only had one fight in the past two years and is currently on a drug suspension.
Even with these challenges, the league continues to sell out events around the world. They boast the biggest MMA star, Conor McGregor, who is the only two concurrent weight division champion in its history. Although one of his belts was taken away due to inactivity, he is currently looking to get back into the ring and defend his other title.
They also have the most fearsome female fighter in the world, Cris Cyborg, who kept her featherweight belt this month in a first round knockout over challenger Yana Kunitskava.
The other major star is Demetrious Johnson, the Flyweight champion who most agree is the pound for pound MMA king. Johnson defended his title for a record 11th time this year and is currently without a worthy opponent.
The league also boasts many rising stars that crowds love and who have come into their own. These fighters include:
In the lightweight division both Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov are coming off impressive victories and will fight each other in UFC 223 on April 7th. The winner will certainly be the next to challenge Conor McGregor for his belt.
In the heavy weight division Stipe Miocic pulled off a big upset over the fighter UFC promoter had picked to be the next big thing, Francis Ngannou. Many question Stipe’s long term potential as the champ, and are picking a fight with veteran Cain Velasquez as a real showdown.
This looks like another strong year for the UFC and MMA, and another chance for punters to place their bets on great UFC fights. By the way, MMA betting almost approaches the popularity of soccer betting at Betolimp on big fights.