The AvB betting market is commonly associated with horse race betting although it can be used with many other types of sports that are in a race format; for instance, Formula 1, MotoGP, and athletics.
This guide will explain what AvB betting is in more detail with real examples. Plus, we’ll assess the pros and cons of this wager compared to the classic win or each way bet.
AvB betting on horse racing
Quite simply, the AvB bet is horse ‘A’ versus horse ‘B’ – which one will have the highest finishing position? It doesn’t matter which horse wins the race. The only result a punter is concerned with is between these two horses.
Let’s take a look at an example for the Betfair Betting Exchange. The race is from Ballarat in Australia. There are ten runners going to post.
Above, are the prices for the ‘win’ market. The image below are the odds for the ‘place’ market (1, 2, 3).
Click on the AvB bet tab, and Betfair has selected Gold Current vs Time Warrior as the head-to-head market. Unfortunately, you cannot select the horses yourself, so you have to go with the operator’s choice.
Weighing up the Win, Place & AvB prices
Of course, the betting odds are going to be somewhat different between the win market and the AvB market.
For the win market:
- Modulo: 3.20 (Fav)
- Vuni: 4.60
- Time Warrior: 5.60
- Gold Current: 5.80
For the place market – pays three places (1s, 2nd, and 3rd):
- Modulo: 1.30 (Fav)
- Vuni: 1.61
- Time Warrior: 1.85
- Gold Current: 1.96
For Gold Current v Time Warrior AvB:
- Gold Current: 2.02
- Time Warrior: 1.73
To determine the value of this bet, you must first consider the likelihood of the ‘A’ and ‘B’ horses winning or achieving a place finish. In this example, the horses, according to the betting markets, are predicted to be 3rd (Time Warrior) and 4th (Gold Current).
This is where you can sniff out the value. If you look at the prices for Time Warrior, it is 1.85 for a place finish, but only 1.73 AvB. Therefore, you get better value with the place, but of course, the horse needs to come first, second or third.
The rolls are reversed for Gold Current. There is slightly better market value on the AvB market (2.02) over the place market (1.96). However, this horse must finish ahead of Time Warrior with the AvB bet.
From using the horse racing form guides offered by most of the leading online betting sites, you can analyze the runners, and draw up your prediction for the race. From that, you can attack the market which offers the most value for money.
For your information, here is the race result. Neither horse won nor placed, so those wagers would have lost. Gold Current came home fourth, so he won the AvB bet.
Final hurdle
If the two horses are tied at the finish, the AvB result is declared as a dead heat. Therefore, you’ll need to confirm with your bookmaker how these wagers are settled.
Lastly, at least one of the two horses must finish the race for the bet to be valid. In most instances, the stake is pushed if neither horse crosses the finishing line.
Greg has been an avid gambler for over 15 years. He loves slot machines and betting on football. He’s been writing on the subject for close to a decade now and knows everything there is to know about video slots, jackpots, and slot sites in general! He has been writing for GamblersPro.com for over five years now.
