UFC Star Contrasts Fight Betting With NFL and NBA Norms, Questions Dana White and Co’s Regulations

Allan Binoy | 04/04/2024
UFC Star Contrasts Fight Betting With NFL and NBA Norms, Questions Dana White and Co’s Regulations

Dana White and the UFC are under the microscope again thanks to a UFC fighter who spoke UFC betting. Betting is a huge part of any sport. Fans bet on the players they think will win them money, and multiple companies sponsor teams and events for the betting involved. However, most sports do not allow athletes to bet on themselves, claiming it will impact their performance. One UFC fighter, though, begs to differ, talking about how it is different in a sport such as the UFC.

Renato Moicano is a Brazilian UFC Fighter. He is a part of the lightweight division in the organization and he has always been very vocal about the things he does not like in the UFC. Continuing the trend, he recently appeared on the Show Me The Money podcast alongside Jon Anik, to discuss fighters betting on themselves and criticize Dana White and the UFC. He said,

“MMA is different than Basketball, than f*cking NFL because it’s fighting. When you’re fighting, you’re just trying to kill the guy, you don’t have time to pick and choose what you’re going to do.”

The Brazilian spoke about how fighting is different than the NBA and NFL because of how unpredictable it is, and how betting in the UFC is different. Renato Moicano went on to say that he is the greatest underdog of the year at the moment. He asked fans to bet on him in his next fight against Jalin Turner at UFC 300.

Speaking of UFC betting, Dana White is very strict when it comes to fighters’ betting. The UFC President spoke out about a betting investigation that took place back in 2022.

Dana White gives UFC fighters an ultimatum if they are caught betting on themselves

Dana White is the UFC President, the face of the UFC. So, along with the appreciation, he is also the one that faces all the backlash if the company slips up. Back in 2022, a betting scandal shook the organization to its core. However, White was calm about the situation and had this to say during a press conference,

“We let these guys know not to bet on fights…If I penalize them, you get cut. They’re gonna go to f*cking federal prison….If you’re that f*cking stupid… knock yourselves out.”

Dana White made it very clear that the UFC would cut any fighter caught betting on themselves. However, even worse than that is, if they are convicted, they would end up in federal prison. The UFC Head Honcho believes it is foolish for fighters to want to risk their entire life over betting on one fight.

Post Edited By: Debmallya Chakraborty
Dana White

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Allan Binoy

Allan Binoy is a MMA journalist at The SportsRush. Taken to the sport in 2015, thanks to a certain Conor McGregor, Allan has himself dabbled in the martial arts. And having graduated from Loyola College, Chennai, with a degree in English Literature, he has learnt to use his love for language to have a voice in the MMA community. Allan has been writing about the gladiatorial stories for more than three years now and has pursued excellence at a number of reputable media organizations, covering every UFC PPV in the last couple of years. In addition to this, the southpaw is also a semi-professional soccer player for Diego Juniors FC in Pune, playing in the Pune Super Division League.

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