All year, cycling fans look forward to major cycling events like the Tour de France. In recent years, the growth of sports betting has helped attract more fans to the cycling world and made races exciting. While most sports betting revolves around more mainstream sports like football and basketball, cycling hasn’t been forgotten.
Most of the top-rated sports betting apps offer betting markets for major cycling events like the Tour De France, Giro d’Italia, and others. They also offer a great user experience and trustworthy payment processes. The key to making successful bets is understanding how betting on cycling races works because it’s not always straightforward. Before making a wager on a cycling event, here is what you need to know.
Types of Bets
The most obvious type of bet in a cycling race is who will win the race. This is a simple type of bet and usually comes with lucrative odds since there are dozens of competitors. But simply betting on the winner of a race isn’t the only way to bet on cycling.
It’s also possible to bet on a particular cyclist to have a podium finish, meaning a top-3 finish. Many platforms also accept bets on racers to finish in the top 10. These types of bets don’t come with the same payout as betting on a cyclist to win a race, but they do give bettors a little margin for error when selecting their favorite competitor.
With a sport like cycling, matchup bets are also popular. This is when sportsbooks create a variety of matchups between two different competitors, allowing bettors to wager on which one will have the best finish. There are also a variety of prop bets in cycling that can cover a variety of areas, including the time frame in which the winner will finish a race and the nationality of the race winner.
What to Consider Before Betting
Aside from knowing the types of bets available for cycling races, it’s imperative that wagers are carefully thought out beforehand. This means doing research and making educated bets based on what you think will happen rather than what you want to happen. In short, the best advice you can get is to make wagers with your head and not your heart.
For example, what type of race will you be betting on? Some races may last only a day while others like the Tour de France have multiple stages and can continue for weeks. Naturally, different types of races will suit different cyclists and different racing styles.
This means knowing the cyclists, as well as their teams, before placing a wager. Some cyclists are better at time trials than they are at climbing mountainous courses. There are also team dynamics and strategies that can factor into what racers will excel in a race. These types of factors can go a long way toward deciding the best cyclists to back with a bet.
Naturally, recent performances also go a long way in determining the winner of a race. A cyclist’s current form is likely to affect their performance in upcoming races. Additionally, consider factors such as illnesses and injuries, as these can greatly impact performance.
Finally, don’t overlook the impact of external factors like weather on the outcome of a race. This is where knowing cyclists comes in handy. Some cyclists perform better in dry conditions while others are better able to handle wet conditions. Factors such as wind strength and direction can also affect the race. Researching these elements before placing a bet will improve your chances of making successful wagers when betting on cycling.
