Online sportsbook FanDuel made a surprising announcement Monday that it is reimbursing anyone who has bet on Max Holloway winning after his “controversial” split decision loss to Alexander Volkanovski in his UFC 251 featherweight title fight. .
Come again? You have read it correctly: a bookmaker is return money (OK, site credit) to customers who lost fairly.
Last Saturday in Abu Dhabi, Holloway attempted to claim the 145-pound title after losing it to Volkanovski last December, but fell short when judges scored it 48-47, 47-48, 48-47 for the champion, to dismay of fans on social networks, as well as this writer.
But here’s the thing: As much as I think Holloway won the fight, it’s not hard to see why it was the other way around. The problem is that rounds were not won more clearly than Holloway winning the first two rounds with crunchy punches and knocking Volkanovski down in each. Round 5 was also definitely in Volkanovski’s favor. Rounds 3 and 4, however, were hotly contested and could have gone either way.
Coming out of this fight, it seems like a lot of people need to hear this, so I’ll just say it: A close fight doesn’t always have to end in “controversy” or “stealing.”
That is what makes FanDuel’s decision curious. Again, without any real controversy, as in, there is no evidence of a solution or conflict of interest or bias, etc., Fan Duel is reimbursing customers essentially because they disagree with the judges.
Which, you know, is an interesting precedent to establish as a bookmaker, but well, a good victory for the little ones. Hopefully some of you can turn it into even bigger profits.
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