UFC betting is growing in popularity along with the sport itself as the company will now be airing fights on Fox, and they’re in the process of expanding their brand in Canada, Brazil, Japan and other countries around the world. But their headquarters will always be in Las Vegas, which is fitting if you’re looking at the sport from a wagering angle and before you begin betting on the UFC, you should know the rules of the sport, which were actually established in New Jersey. .

There are eight weight classes: flyweight (max 125 pounds), bantamweight (135), featherweight (145), lightweight (155), welterweight (170), middleweight (185), light heavyweight (205), heavyweight (265). Gone are the days of seeing sumo wrestlers fight lightweights, which makes it a little easier to come up with odds for everyone from price per head bookie companies to sportsbooks. Most matches are three rounds of five minutes each, but now championship bouts and main events are scheduled for five rounds. There is, of course, a one-minute break between rounds.

You win via submission (making an opponent tap out either physically or verbally), a technical knockout (referee stops the contest) or any number of decisions (unanimous, split, majority, draw), and there can no-contests as well. There are a number of fouls that are not allowed and the referee has discretion to take away a point at any time (fouls like low blows, hair pulling, soccer kicks and other moves fall under this category). These are just a few of the rules, and you should have a thorough knowledge before making a bet in your online wagering book.

UFC fans have been waiting for Alistair Overeem to come to the promotion for years, and the former Strikerforce champion will finally make his debut at UFC 141 in Las Vegas as he takes on former UFC champ Brock Lesnar with a shot at current titleholder Junior Dos Santos on the line.

UFC 141 Odds – December 30^th, 8:00 PM ET

Overeem (35-11, 1 NC) also won titles in Dream and K-1, the world’s premier kickboxing association, and he is the only man to hold MMA and kickboxing belts simultaneously. He is one of the most feared strikers in the world, but bookies that use pay head companies know that Overeem is also a strong grappler and won’t be afraid to go to the mat.

Lesnar (5-2) will be aiming to take this match to the mat as his wrestling is spectacular, and he’s a frightening mix of size and athleticism. Lesnar hasn’t fought since October 2010, when he lost the belt via TKO to Cain Velasquez (who then lost the title to Dos Santos last month), so ring rust could be an issue for the former UFC champion.

Overeem comes in as a -160 favorite for this title eliminator, while Lesnar is rated at +140, and this is a matchup of styles: Overeem’s striking against Lesnar’s wrestling. Overeem hasn’t lost since September 2007 and he needs to push Lesnar’s conditioning as we saw how ring rust played a role in Velasquez’s loss. Overeem also won’t be overwhelmed by Lesnar on the ground, and we’re taking “The Reem” in our sportsbooks in this one.

UFC fans are witnessing the beginning of an era on mixed martial arts, due to Jon Jones’ ascent to the top of the 205-pound division. He’ll look to keep his run going on December 10^th at UFC 140 in Toronto, when he’ll take on former champion Lyoto Machida.

UFC Odds – Saturday, December 10^th, 9:00 PM ET

Jones (14-1) is looking to conclude one of the greatest years in MMA history as price per head players have watched him roll through Ryan Bader, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson since February, and he hasn’t been challenged. He’s a superior wrestler with good enough striking to keep his opponents off-balance, and his 84-inch reach allows him to dictate the pace of fights. Two of his last three wins have come via submission, but we know Jones is capable of a big KO.

Machida (17-2) may have the KO of the year after ending Randy Couture’s career in Toronto in April, and he looked like the “Dragon” of old. He strikes from different angles, but he’ll have his hands full trying to get inside of Jones’ reach. Machida likes to stay on the outside and counter, which won’t be of much use against the champ.

Jones is a -450 favorite against Machida, who comes in at +375, and we know he is dangerous, but Jones has been on another planet this year. Machida has excellent takedown defense, but Jones is stubborn and will continue to try to take the fight to the mat, although Machida is a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. In what should be a close fight, go with Jon Jones in your best online sportsbook.

UFC fans get to see a pair of Pride legends in San Jose at UFC 139, as Mauricio “Shogun” Rua brings his knockout power against Dan Henderson, who has never lost via KO and is marking his third run in the UFC. This light-heavyweight clash could be a classic.

UFC Odds – Saturday, November 19^th

Rua (20-5) bounced back from losing the 205-pound belt to Jon Jones by destroying another former champ, Forrest Griffin, in a rematch in Rua’s debut, which was won by Griffin. Price per head players know that there are few who are more explosive than “Shogun”, who wants another shot at the title and a win over Henderson would show that he is on the road back to the top.

Henderson (28-8) has won belts in Pride and Strikeforce at 185 and 205 pounds, but he’s coming off a win over Fedor Emelianenko at heavyweight, although he didn’t weight much more than his normal 205 pounds. He has won his last three fights by KO, and Henderson sets up his heavy-handed shots with a strong wrestling game. Henderson also defeated Rua’s older brother, Murilo, back in November 2001.

“Shogun” opened as a favorite of around -160, and that’s a fair line considering the stature of these two. Rua is younger than Henderson by almost 12 years, and he showed in his last fight that he may have been hurt in the Jones fight. But Henderson is extremely tough and as was mentioned, he’s never been knocked out. Still, we’re going with a “Shogun” on a mission in our best online sportsbook.

UFC fans will get a show at UFC 138 in Birmingham, England, as a pair of exciting middleweights step into the octagon looking for a chance to move up in the ranks at 185 pounds.

UFC Betting – November 5^th, 9:00 PM ET

Chris Leben (22-7) comes into this match as a +200 underdog in your bookie software, but his exciting style always gives him a chance while leaving him open to strikes as well. Leben, an alumni of the first “Ultimate Fighter”, knocked out Wanderlei Sivla in July and he always comes to brawl until he (or his opponent if all goes well) falls. But he has an underrated ground game, which doesn’t always show because of his preference to stand and give the fans a thrill.

Munoz (11-2) is a former wrestling champion who has some of the best ground-and-pound in the game, and he is working to improve his jiu-jitsu as well. Munoz has won his last three fights and one of his two losses was a split decision against Yushin Okami, so he has had a good run and Munoz is looking to step over Leben to get into title contention.

The “Filipino Wrecking Machine” is a -240 favorite in this contest, and it’s a very good possibility that this fight won’t go the distance. Both have knockout power and look to use it, but this fight could come down to Leben’s ability to stuff Munoz’s takedowns and if he gets taken down, can he survive? Can he submit Munoz from his back? Tito Ortiz came up with a huge upset and we’re taking Chris Leben for the upset as well in our best online sportsbook.

At UFC 136 on Saturday night, Kenny Florian will be looking to remove the title of ‘choke artist’ from his resume. Florian a fighter that has moved around four weight classes throughout his career has become a fan favorite despite his inability to capture a title. The last time bookie software pundits had Florian winning a title was against former Lightweight Champion BJ Penn. However, as many of you already know Florian was unable to get the job done. Entering Saturday night’s fight with Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo, should sports betting enthusiasts believe Kenny Florian can end Aldo’s reign atop the UFC’s latest division?

On Saturday night at UFC 136, Kenny Florian will be making his third attempt at capturing UFC gold, when he takes on former WEC Lightweight turned Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo.  Florian received his first UFC title fight when he was 29 at UFC 64, when he took on Sean Sherk for the vacant Lightweight title. Unfortunately, as was the case in his second opportunity against BJ Penn in 2009, Florian ended up with the loss.

Now in his upcoming battle with Jose Aldo, fans can make the argument that Florian shouldn’t even be in the Featherweight division. Essentially, Florian only moved to Featherweight, after losing to Gray Maynard for the Lightweight title eliminator. As a result of that fight, Florian dropped down in weight and destroyed Diego Nunes in both his Featherweight debut, and eliminator for Aldo’s title.

On paper, this fight still appears to favor the younger Aldo, as he is on a 12-fight win streak, in which he has literally destroyed the Featherweight division. The one questionable fight for Aldo came in his most recent fight against Canadian Mark Hominick, who took the Champion to the limit.

In the most rare UFC betting situations, a championship bout will end in a draw with the champion retaining his title and the challenger left scratching his head, focusing on all that went wrong that night that could have made the difference in him fulfilling his aspirations. When Gray Maynard gets his rematch against UFC Lightweight champion Frankie Edgar at UFC 136 on October 8, 2011, all the frustrations that come with those thoughts are bound to explode like an oil drum set on fire. Maynard has defeated Edgar before back in 2008 when the two were still rising stars in the sport, and heading in to the third contest between these combatants, all bets are off.

Maynard actually scored the decision in the first round of the title fight between these two, but after Edgar took the second the judges called a draw in the final round, resulting in an uproar from UFC fans that expected otherwise. Fast-forward nine months later and these two combatants are preparing to step in to the octagon against one another for the third time, and fans have to wonder if this is the time that Edgar finally solves the only opponent that has ever beaten him. Neither fighter is known for having incredible knockout fishing power and both thrive on their experience and technique, so it wouldn’t be a surprise if this one went to the judge’s decision once again, with Edgar finally beating Maynard to retain his sports betting title.

In the world of MMA, the 2011 sports betting season has appeared to be challenging of sorts. Essentially, fans and experts are finding that the monthly cards of both Strikeforce and the UFC have been rather hit or miss. With UFC 133 in the books, fans appetites for destruction are as fresh as ever. Today we wonder, is the UFC betting 134 card stacked or a bust in the making?

On paper, by all accounts, the only way that UFC 134 can be disappointing is if all of the fighters get sick and fight conservatively, away from their normal styles. The card is headlined by a Middleweight title fight, featuring champion Anderson Silva, taking on a man he absolutely hates, Yushin Okami. The back story of this fight is quite intriguing, as the duo met up in the first round of the Middleweight tournament Rumble On The Rock back in 2006. During that fight, Silva kicked Okami in the face, and despite possibly being able to continue, Okami was declared the winner, because the kick by Silva was illegal at the time. Now, literally five years later, Silva has a vested interest in decimating Okami, after he was robbed of a win.

The other spectacular fight on the UFC 134 card is the semi main event, which features two fighters in need of a title. Light Heavyweights, Mauricio Rua and Forrest Griffin meet in the octagon, to determine who should be the number one contender, to the winner of Rashad Evans and either Jon Jones or Rampage Jackson later this year. In theory, this fight will also have a lot riding on the line, as another loss to Rua, may have UFC President Dana White, quick to pulling the plug on any attempted comeback.

In roughly nine days, sports betting MMA handicappers will be travelling to Philadelphia to watch UFC 133. The card is headlined by UFC betting legends Rashad Evans and Tito Ortiz squaring off in a Light Heavyweight fight. While the main event has taken the spotlight away from the rest of the fighters on the card, fans wanting to wager on UFC 136 will find many other good fights on the card. Here are a few fights to keep your eyes on.

Middleweight Vitor Belfort v Yoshihiro Akiyama – UFC 133 will also mark the return of Vitor Belfort, who most fight fans last saw with his face kissing the canvas of the octagon at UFC 126 after being knocked out by Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. Akiyama on the other hand is a fighter that has taken all three of his fights in the UFC to decision, but hasn’t put in a stellar performance yet. With so much riding on this fight for each fighter, look for both to come out guns a blazing.

Featherweight Mike Brown v Nam Phan – This fight features two top tier Featherweight fighters on the planet, as former Bantamweight Champion Mike Brown takes on Nam Phan of TUF St. Pierre v Koscheck fame. Both fighters bring an exciting striking style to the table, and could steal fight of the night honors. Comparable to Belfort and Akiyama, both Brown and Phan are coming off losses in their last fights. However, this time at least one will be walking out with the victory.

Welterweight Rory MacDonald v Mike Pyle – UFC 133 has some Canadian content on the card, as Rory MacDonald a 22 year old from British Columbia takes on Mike Pyle. Macdonald at 11 and one in 12 fights has to be considered the favorite in this fight. However, the 35 year old Pyle is riding a three fight win streak, and should not be underestimated.