Defying the odds: The 10 biggest MMA betting upsets of 2023

Check out the top 10 MMA betting upsets of 2023, according to the oddsmakers, across Bellator, the UFC, PFL and more.

Who doesn’t love a good upset?

In 2023, MMA saw its fair share of underdogs who defied the odds in the UFC, Bellator, PFL, and beyond. While everyone has an opinion of who should win and who should lose, the oddsmakers (and how the betting public responds) largely get the final say on what history reflects.

This year, with the help of MMA database Tapology, MMA Junkie has compiled the top 10 betting upsets of 2023. Fights that were eligible were those that multiple major online sportsbooks recognized, and that Tapology recorded before the close of the betting line.

Promotions eligible include UFC, Bellator, PFL, KSW, DWCS, Road to UFC, and ONE Championship.

Check out the top 10 MMA betting upsets of 2023 below. Only major MMA promotions were included in the tally.

MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month for November: UFC 295 slugfest ends in a draw

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from November 2023.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from November 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month award for November.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.

Nominees

UFC Fight Night 231 post-event facts: Jailton Almeida sets ground control time record

Check out all the facts from UFC Sao, which saw Jailton Almeida log a record amount of ground control time over Derrick Lewis in the main event.

The UFC’s return to Sao Paulo after more than four years proved to be a forgettable one on Saturday, with UFC Fight Night 231 seeing six of 10 bouts go the distance with three canceled fights in the 48 hours leading up.

One of the fights go to the scorecards was the main event, [autotag]Jailton Almeida[/autotag] (20-2 MMA, 6-0 UFC) earned a lopsided but somewhat underwhelming unanimous decision over [autotag]Derrick Lewis[/autotag] (27-12 MMA, 18-10 UFC) to remain undefeated in heavyweight competition.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 231.

UFC Fight Night 231 Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay: 2023 total passes $7 million

UFC Fight Night 231 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.

SAO PAULO – Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 231 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $145,000.

The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.

UFC Fight Night 231 took place at Ginasio Do Ibirapuera in Brazil. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.

The full UFC Fight Night 231 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:

* * * *

[autotag]Jailton Almeida[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Derrick Lewis[/autotag]: $21,000

[autotag]Nicolas Dalby[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Gabriel Bonfim[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Rodrigo Nascimento[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Don’Tale Mayes[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Caio Borralho[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Abus Magomedov[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Elves Brener[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Kaynan Kruschewsky[/autotag]: $4,000

[autotag]Rinat Fakhretdinov[/autotag]: $4,500
vs. [autotag]Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos[/autotag]: $11,000

[autotag]Vitor Petrino[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Modestas Bukauskas[/autotag]: $6,000

[autotag]Angela Hill[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Denise Gomes[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Eudarda Moura[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Montserrat Conejo[/autotag]: $4,500

[autotag]Marc Diakiese[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Kaue Fernandes[/autotag]: $4,000

Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2311 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.

In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.

Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:

Year-to-date total: $7,033,000
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $21,552,000

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 231.

UFC Fight Night 231 bonuses: A pair of devastating knockouts awarded $50K

Check out which fighters took home an extra $50,000 for their performances at UFC Fight Night 231 in Sao Paulo.

The UFC handed out four post-fight bonuses after Saturday’s card, including rewards for a few devastating finishes.

After UFC Fight Night 231, four fighters picked up an extra $50,000 for their performances in Sao Paulo. Check out the winners below.

UFC Fight Night 231 video: Nicolas Dalby upsets unbeaten Gabriel Bonfim with violent flurry

Nicolas Dalby walked into hostile territory at UFC Fight Night 231 and stopped Gabriel Bonfim for one of the biggest upsets of 2023.

[autotag]Nicolas Dalby[/autotag] walked into hostile territory at UFC Fight Night 231 and ended the undefeated streak of the heavily hyped [autotag]Gabriel Bonfim[/autotag].

Dalby (23-4-1 MMA, 7-3-1 UFC) brought a tough and tenacious background of never being finished into the welterweight co-headliner at Ginasio Do Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo. He was a sizeable underdog against Bonfim (15-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC), who had finished every opponent he’s previously faced in MMA competition.

The fight got off to a hot start for Bonfim, who landed hard shots and controlled the opening frame with dominant grappling. Dalby came out undeterred in the second frame, however, and pressured his opponent with punches, elbows and knees until he badly stunned the Brazilian for the TKO at the 4:33 mark of Round 2.

Check out the replay of Dalby’s thrilling upset below (via X):

After his fourth straight win, Dalby asked for a ranked name at 170 pounds, and perhaps even a live event in his native Copenhagen, Denmark.

“When my mind is set to something, nothing can stop me,” Dalby said in his post-fight interview with Michael Bisping. “Sean (Shelby), Mick (Maynard), Dana (White), give me a top-15 (opponent).”

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 231 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 231.

Nicolas Dalby def. Gabriel Bonfim at UFC Fight Night 231: Best photos

Check out the best photos from Nicolas Dalby’s second-round TKO upset win over Gabriel Bonfim at UFC Fight Night 231 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Check out the best photos from [autotag]Nicolas Dalby[/autotag]’s second-round TKO win over [autotag]Gabriel Bonfim[/autotag] at UFC Fight Night 231 at Ginasio Do Ibirapuera in Sao Paulo. (Photos by Jason da Silva, USA TODAY Sports)

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Aug. 21-27)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Aug. 21-27.

UFC 291 fighter pay: Kevin Holland leads limited list after Utah commission amends policy

Utah gave UFC 291 fighters a choice: to disclose their pay to the public or not. Here’s how much those who disclosed were paid.

The sanctioning body for combat sports in Utah has released UFC 291 disclosed payouts – but for only four of the athletes.

[autotag]Kevin Holland[/autotag] stood atop a list of disclosed paydays that included also [autotag]Bobby Green[/autotag], [autotag]Gabriel Bonfim[/autotag], and [autotag]CJ Vergara[/autotag], as the four fighters who declined to opt into a pre-fight non-disclosure agreement.

Athletes who competed on the July 29 card in Salt Lake City were given the option by the Pete Suazo Utah Athletic Commission (PSUAC) to make their purse amounts publicly accessible, as revealed by manager Alex Davis on July 28, following official weigh-ins.

Previously, fighter purse information had been released as public record. Though PSUAC executive director Scott Bowler initially declined to provide the information to MMA Junkie after UFC 278 in August 2022, it was eventually provided.

After a recent request for UFC 291 fighters’ purses, Bowler, who also serves as vice president of the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports (ABC), explained the change in a written response letter to MMA Junkie and called the information “trade secrets.”

“The athletes… have expressed valid concerns regarding the public disclosure of the compensation amount in bout agreements because public disclosure of their purse amounts will negatively impact their individual ability to negotiate compensation or purse amounts for future events,” Bowler wrote. ”

You can read Bowler’s full response here.

Scroll below to see the salaries for the four athletes who declined to sign the waiver and how much they pocketed for their wins.

Gabriel Bonfim wants to test himself against striker Neil Magny after quick win at UFC 291

Undefeated UFC welterweight Gabriel Bonfim explains why he wants to fight Neil Magny next.

SALT LAKE CITY – Neil Magny is the name that [autotag]Gabriel Bonfim[/autotag] has in mind for his next UFC fight.

Following his Saturday win at UFC 291, Bonfim used his post-fight interview to call out Magny. The undefeated Brazilian prospect thinks that would be an appropriate next step to prove he belongs in the UFC’s rankings.

“He’s someone that’s in the top 15 that’s been there, and I thought that would be a good fight,” Bonfim told reporters at the UFC 291 post-fight press conference at Delta Center in Salt Lake City. “He’s a striker, and I want to fight someone that’s a striker. That way, I can test myself.”

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Bonfim (15-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) submitted Giles (16-5 MMA, 7-5 UFC) with a guillotine choke in the first round of their welterweight contest at UFC 291. He was happy with his showing.

“I’m very happy to be fighting for my second time here in the UFC. Winning by guillotine (gives me) two guillotines in two consecutive events, so I’m really happy,” Bonfim said.

Although he won by submission, Bonfim said he also thinks he sent a message to the division regarding his striking. He thinks Giles didn’t want to stand with him, and that’s why the groundwork was initiated.

“My plan was to strike, but as you saw it, when my hand got in there he just went to the ground, so he didn’t prove himself and I actually proved to be not only a better boxer, but one of the best in the division,” Bonfim said.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 291.