Dominant UFC fighter Ronda Rousey draws crowds, but not bettors

Popularity in sports typically translates to increased volume at the betting windows, but that rule of thumb has an exception when it comes to Ronda Rousey.

Fan favorites, such as the Dallas Cowboys, New York Yankees and Notre Dame, are must-see attractions that also draw a wealth of betting action.

Rousey, the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s dominant women’s bantamweight champion, is skilled at drawing crowds, such as the 70,000 expected for her Saturday night (Pacific time) title defense against Holly Holm in Melbourne, Australia.

But the support for Rousey, who’s from Venice, slows at the betting window.

“We have more bets against her than for her, because people are more attracted to that low-risk, high-reward scenario on the women she fights rather than laying $20 to win $1,” said Jay Kornegay, director of the Westgate Superbook in Las Vegas. “They’d rather bet $8 to win $80.”

He likened bettors’ behavior toward Rousey to “the Mike Tyson phenomenon,” when Las Vegas was buzzing about the legendary heavyweight’s bouts, but the masses failed to spend at the sports book because of Tyson’s tendency to win by a quick knockout.

In her last four fights, Rousey, 28, needed only a combined 2 minutes 10 seconds to finish off Sara McMann (1:06), Alexis Davis (16 seconds), Cat Zingano (14 seconds) and Bethe Correia (34 seconds).

“We usually have quite a bit of liability on the underdog,” said Jay Rood, race and sports book director for MGM Resorts. “When [Rousey] does get beat, we’re going to be a big loser on that night.”

In Holm (9-0), Rousey (12-0) faces a former boxing world champion who has yet to be taken down in two UFC victories.

Rousey’s trainer, Edmond Tarverdyan, said he expects Holm will “run,” looking to remain upright to avoid Rousey’s Olympic-medalist judo skills while trying to land a shocking punch or kick, since the challenger once fought professionally as a kickboxer.

“Well, [Holm] can’t win that way,” Kornegay said. “Rousey is pretty patient and smart. She’s not going to be chasing her all around the ring. She’ll just wait until she gets her hands on her, and once she gets her paws on her, it’s good night Irene.”

At Westgate, Rousey is a 20-to-1 favorite. Bet $20 on her to win, and collect $21 with the expected victory — Las Vegas’ version of a sure thing previously typified by Tyson, Sugar Ray Leonard and Floyd Mayweather Jr.

“People won’t bet it as much because they’re pretty sure what’s going to happen,” Kornegay said. “The more competitive the fight, the more action.”

Rood said his sports books, which include MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay, are hurt when big fights take place outside Las Vegas.

“Most [UFC] undercard fights are competitive and we get good action on them, especially when we host,” Rood said. “We’ll miss the action on the other fights that we usually get from the people walking through the casino on the way to the fight.”

When Rousey fights at the MGM Grand, Rood said, “we’re bringing in a crowd with the mindset to bet the fight.

“When it’s here at the Grand, [the handle] is on par with an average boxing match, not a [Manny] Pacquiao, Mayweather or ‘Canelo’ [Alvarez] fight, but she draws a decent amount.”

For Saturday’s bout, Kornegay offers a proposition bet on how long the Rousey-Holm fight will last.

The “under” on 1 1/2 rounds is a 4-to-1 favorite — bet $40 to win a $10 profit.

“It’s most likely this fight is going to end in Round 1,” he said.

Rousey’s athletic gifts are complemented by a fast-twitch mind able to quickly solve the riddles of mixed martial arts fighting. Through Rousey’s six UFC fights, only one opponent, Miesha Tate, has taken her past the first round.

“Until she has a matchup that’s more competitive — and that’s not a knock against her or the UFC, she’s just by far the best — her fights won’t bring a lot of attention,” Kornegay said. “Once Tyson lost [to 40-to-1 underdog James “Buster” Douglas], the odds dropped dramatically and they were more bet-able fights.”

So Kornegay is braced for a weekend in which gamblers will discuss Rousey’s fight, but let their money ride on less-certain events like football games.

“I don’t want to say there’s no interest in it, but there’s not a lot of betting interest, and, to me, there’s a big difference between those two things,” Kornegay said.

Rood said he aired his dissatisfaction with Rousey fighting outside of Las Vegas in internal MGM meetings.

“It’d be great to keep her phenomenon here,” he said. “I realize the UFC is more of a global brand, but from our perspective, it’d be far better if her fights were a constant here, like Mayweather’s.

“I was kind of [upset], I asked, ‘How does this get away from us? I hope we have a deal where they come back to us … next year.’”