MMA, or mixed martial arts, is a full-combat sport that incorporates techniques from different disciplines such as boxing, karate, Muay Thai, wrestling, and judo. While many purists deride MMA as a bloodthirsty spectacle devoid of boxing’s grace, it’s quickly becoming one of the world’s most popular sports and betting events. MMA betting sites offer a wide range of wagering options including money lines, Over/Under rounds, and method of victory bets.

Mma betting is most common online and in-person at a sportsbook, where bettor can place bets in real time as the fight unfolds. While the best mma betting sites may not have as much of a physical presence, their odds are just as dynamic and can change with fighter news, fan interest, and even weather conditions inside the cage. MMA betting is also available on mobile devices, which are convenient and allow you to bet while watching the fight from the comfort of your home or even your local pub.

While there are many different betting markets for MMA, the most common bets are on fighter money lines and Over/Under round totals. Mma betting sites are also likely to offer a selection of prop bets, parlays (accumulators), and Inplay betting as well. Prop bets are a great way to add some extra excitement to a wager and can give you a better understanding of how the fighters in a fight match up.

In MMA, it’s important to gain technical insight into fighters’ styles and how they contrast with one another in order to make smarter bets. Mma fighting statistics such as striking accuracy and strikes landed per minute are helpful tools when handicapping a fight, and should be considered alongside the fighters’ overall record and the opponents they have won and lost against.

Some MMA betting sites will also offer a ‘Draw’ bet option, which is typically offered for matches where the winner of a fight isn’t clear. The draw bet offers higher payouts than betting on a particular fighter to win, and can be a good way to add some suspense to your MMA betting experience.

Occasionally, fighters withdraw from fights at the last moment and are replaced by a substitute. While this can often be a good thing, the substitution fighter will typically have a lower win percentage than the original opponent and is thus riskier to bet on.

Mma bettors should always consider how a fighter’s stance can affect their ability to perform certain maneuvers. For instance, some MMA fighters are orthodox, while others are southpaw. Similarly, some fighters like to kick their opponents while they are down, but this can get you disqualified in the UFC. In contrast, some MMA fighters are known for their grappling skills and are therefore more effective at placing takedown bets. It’s worth noting that a fight can also end by submission, KO, or TKO, so bettors should always check the rules of the bout before placing any wagers on how a fight will conclude.

A horse race is a sport in which horses are driven at high speeds by jockeys on their backs to compete with other horses and win bettors’ money. The horse that crosses the finish line first is deemed the winner. Some races are short, while others are long distances and considered tests of speed and stamina.

Horse races are usually run on a flat track, although some include hurdles or other obstacles. They start at starting gates, which are placed horizontally across the track and open at a predetermined time to allow the horses to enter. Horses then begin racing as hard as they can for the length of the race, with some saving energy for a sprint known as the home stretch. The winner is the horse that crosses the finish line with its nose.

The most popular horse races are those that take place on a dirt surface, but turf and synthetic tracks are also used in some places. Some races are held in the United States, while others take place throughout Europe and Asia. The most famous and prestigious races are the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in France, the Kentucky Derby in America, the Melbourne Cup and Caulfield Cup in Australia, the Gran Premio Internacional Carlos Pellegrini in Argentina, and the Tokyo Gold Cup in Japan.

While human athletes are often motivated to win and beat their personal bests, there is no such incentive for a horse. The winning time of a race is the result of many complex inputs including the horse’s own innate ability to run modified by human and environmental factors such as its position in the starting gate, the ‘going’ (the surface on which the race is held), tactics, and other riders. In addition, a horse’s weight is another major variable, with heavier horses generally having slower times.

Linear regression analysis has shown that for most horse races the improvement in winning time slowed down significantly after 1949; however, this pattern is not always consistent, and there are a number of exceptions such as the mile and 10K. The reason for this slowing down is not completely clear, but Gaffney and Cunningham have suggested that insufficient genetic variance through generations of inbreeding may have played a role.

The revelations about trainer Steve Asmussen’s alleged treatment of his world-class thoroughbreds have come as a shock to many in the racing community, and have brought renewed attention to the need for serious reform to ensure that horse racing is both fair and safe for all animals involved. In the end, though, it is the horses, who are forced to run so fast that they are often injured and can even hemorrhage from their lungs, that must be protected. Behind the romanticized facade of Thoroughbred horse racing, there is a world of drugs, injuries, and cruelty that must be addressed. The vast majority of people who work in the industry see wrongdoing and try to do right by the horses, but there is a small, feral minority that still has the power to stain the integrity of the sport.