Defeat for MMA star Chandler but tie up with SportsBook seen as a win for all parties

SUPERBOOK’S link-up with MMA star Michael Chandler is just a few days old, but it already appears to be paying dividends.

The gambling firm may have preferred the lightweight fighter to claim a win in his first bout after signing up with SuperBook, but he was involved in one of the fights of the year before losing out to Justin Gaethje, reports the Offers Bet.

The three-round battle at UFC 268 went the Arizona fighter’s way, but with the pair pictured embracing when they both ended up in hospital together – medical experts at Madison Square Garden felt they needed checking out due to the brutality of their encounter – the publicity is the perfect start to the link-up with Chandler.

The deal will see 35-year-old Chandler mention SuperBook Sports on his social media channels in the build up to fights – he has one million-plus followers on Twitter and Instagram – along with providing the gambling firm with exclusive interviews.

SuperBook head of marketing, Kristin Mackey, said: “Our partnership with a talented fighter like Michael Chandler really shows the commitment of SuperBook Sports to UFC fans around the world.”

And it seems that despite Gaethje winning, Chandler and SuperBook have both gained from his efforts in the octagon, the clash labelled as the ‘most violent fight ever’ in some quarters. Despite a seventh professional defeat, the performance of the fighter who hails from Tennessee but is now based in Florida, should earn him a shot at another contender in the talent-packed 155lb weight class.

While fight fans hailed the encounter as one of the best they’d ever seen, Gaethje was full of praise for an opponent he described as a “warrior”.

The deal between SportsBook and Chandler is the first time the Las Vegas-based sports betting operator has tied itself to an active sports professional, and it is the latest step in a series of initiatives to further expand the business. Many firms have signed sports people up as brand ambassadors, but it is usually after the star’s sports career has ended.

In June, the firm expanded its operation out of Nevada for the first time, opening a site at the Lodge Casino in Black Hawk, Colorado, and followed that two months later by expanding into New Jersey. And in September they teamed with the University of Denver, the second university in the state to launch a co-operation with a sports betting operator.

Colorado is seen as one of the most open states for bettors following the relaxation of the US’s strict gambling laws, voters legalizing sports betting in the state in November 2019. The legal sports betting market kicked off six months later and in the first year of legal wagering, Colorado residents bet $2.3billion on sports — and the State of Colorado collected over $6.6million in taxes in that time.

As well as the tie up with Chandler, this week saw Paysafe announce that its payment platform is now available in New Jersey and Colorado via SuperBook Sports – the latest in a number of accepted payment methods at the gambling firm.

Registered bettors at SuperBook will be able to select one of multiple deposit and withdrawal methods, including online bank transfers, credit and debit cards, as well as alternative methods like Paysafe and Skrill.