Ronda Rousey may have long lost the aura of invincibility built around her by the media, but her influence on the sport is still felt…
According to Mandalay Bay Sports Director Mike Piranio, MMA now plays a serious part when it comes to punters’ dollars, but that has not always been the case. According to Piranio, the UFC, in particular, has caught up with boxing when it comes to punters’ stakes (via MMAjunkie):
“It’s climbed every year, and it’s on par with boxing now. There’ll be a boxing match every once in a while, like [Floyd] Mayweather’s last fight, [which] was probably bigger than anything. But on a week to week basis … if it’s a good card in MMA, we’re getting just as much interest in those.”
Piranio said MMA’s bigger stars will always garner more interest when it comes to bets, but the UFC’s TV deal with FOX has also been responsible for an upsurge in gambling associated with MMA:
“The bigger names, it makes a huge difference in people betting and what we have to offer,” he said. part of it, to be honest with you, is MMA does it just a little bit different than boxing, where they have enough free cards. Boxing, on the good end (has) Showtime and HBO, which are good. As far as the free on regular TV, MMA keeps a lot of interest, and I think that helps them on the back end with their pay-per-view.”
Piranio also stated that it was former bantamweight champion and female MMA luminary Ronda Rousey who can be given particular credit the impact on gambling receipts for MMA events:
“I would say the Rousey run was a lot of [betting] tickets, and a lot of different interest in that,” he said. “That was really good for MMA and the UFC, obviously. She made a huge impact in the number of people (betting on MMA) – and they still come now. It’s not like they quit. If she fights again, I’m sure they’ll come back and bet it.
“She upped the interest in MMA for the regular sports book fan – guys who don’t follow it religiously, they know about it now.”
