In the UFC, a no contest is a fight that ends with no winner and no loser, usually because it was stopped before the judges could decide it. The Unified Rules of MMA define it as a fighter stopped early by an accidental injury before the scorecards can give a decision. The cut-off is two completed rounds of a three-round bout, or three of a five-round bout.
That injury comes from an accidental foul, such as an eye poke or a clash of heads, and a regulator can also change a finished result to a no contest. Head to head bets on a no contest are commonly void, but check your bookmaker's wording.
What causes a no contest
| What happens | Rule | Result |
|---|---|---|
| An accidental foul stops an MMA bout before the cut-off | Unified Rules of MMA | No contest |
| The same stoppage after that point | Unified Rules of MMA | Technical decision for the fighter ahead on the cards |
| An accidental foul, or a disruption that leads the referee, an inspector or police to stop the bout, in a professional NSW contest before the threshold | Combat Sports Authority of NSW, rule 15 | No contest |
| A regulator changes a finished result: on a protest review, or in Nevada after an anti-doping violation | Unified Rules of MMA, rule 2; Nevada's NAC 467.579 | Can become a no contest |
The NSW threshold for professional contests moves with the scheduled length: the end of round 2 of three, round 3 of four or five, and round 4 of six or more. An injury from a legal strike is a TKO instead, as KO vs TKO explains.
How bets on a no contest settle
With an illustrative $1.62, $50 on Fighter A in a three-round UFC bout stopped by an accidental clash of heads:
| When the bout is stopped | Official result | $50 on Fighter A at $1.62 |
|---|---|---|
| 4:40 of round 2 | No contest: two rounds not yet complete | Void under the common rule type: $50 back |
| 0:30 of round 3, A ahead on the cards | Technical decision for A | Wins: $50 x 1.62 = $81.00 |
| 0:30 of round 3, B ahead | Technical decision for B | Loses: $0.00 |
For method, round and total rounds bets, one rule type voids every bet on the bout and another keeps bets already decided before the stoppage. In a multi, a no contest leg usually counts as 1.00. If a result is changed later, the NSW rule book for sports bookmakers keeps bets on the original official result (5.1.11). UFC cancelled fight bets works through the other rule types.
No contest vs draw
| No contest | Draw | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | No result | A result: the judges' scores are level |
| How it comes about | An early accidental foul or disruption, or a regulator's later change | A unanimous, majority or split draw, or in MMA a technical draw after an intentional foul injury |
| Market with a draw price | Commonly void | The draw wins and both fighters lose (NSW rule book, 5.1.7) |
| On a fighter's record | NC, counted separately | A draw |
UFC betting in Australia covers how a draw settles in a two-way market.
Checking a bookmaker's fight rules before you bet
Before a fight, search your bookmaker's combat sports terms for no contest, draw and disqualification.
B337's Terminal shows prices from 40+ bookmakers across racing and sports. Its sports board covers AFL, NRL, NBA, soccer, tennis and more when markets are up, each bookmaker in its own column on head to head, line and total markets, which the guide to sports betting explains. Prices are read on a repeating cycle, so confirm the price with your bookmaker. A free account opens a limited view of the Terminal with live odds.
Risk: Betting involves risk. A no contest returns only the stake, and a stoppage just past the threshold is a result that can lose. See responsible gambling for limits and support.