Reality TV shows that set champion UFC fighters up against one another with a bunch of rookie wannabe fighters have clearly done nothing to damage the growing interest in the sport, and although the gambling population is slowly becoming aware of the UFC as an option, it can be difficult to ascertain just how a bet is placed on these fights because bookmakers don't tend to run the normal win/lose odds on them.

UFC fights are usually drawn up by the bookmakers with moneylines instead of your average 18/1 odds. This is done because in so many UFC fights there is a clear favourite and a clear amateur, hoping for a win but unlikely to succeed.

If the odds were laid out according to expectations of the fight, a huge percentage of bettors would simply bet on the favourite and all of them would be winners. Not only is this completely un-thrilling, but it means that as bets on the favourite pour in before the fight, the odds are greater and greater in his favour until there is almost nothing to gain off the win for anyone except big spenders. And us average gamblers don't usually want to bet our life savings, even on a sure thing. To combat this trend, the moneyline is brought in for betting on UFC fights.

A moneyline is really just another way to place the odds without hugely favouring one fighter over another. Instead of 3/1 odds or some such number, one fighter will be listed with a negative number and the other with a positive number. Let's say two fighters were posted with a moneyline of -140 and +110; if you bet on the favourite with the negative number, you will have to spend 140 pounds to win 100 pounds. Conversely, if you bet on the underdog at +110, then your 100 pounds bet could win you 110 pounds.

The moneylines will fluctuate in the hours and days preceding the fight because the bookmaker doesn't want the bettors to start favouring either fighter; however the bet you take out is fixed and you deal with the specific moneyline that was posted when you gave the bookmaker your money.

Because the UFC is a growing industry both within the sports world and the betting world, it can be tough to find bookmakers with any odds posted for them at all, moneyline or otherwise. If you want to bet online, however, the internet is the place to find your fight and cash in on your favourites.