Wyoming has added Dana White’s controversial new combat sport, ‘Power Slap’ to its approved WY sports betting catalog. Power Slap classes itself as the world’s premier slap fighting organization and the product, like White’s UFC, is licensed and sanctioned by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

The league is also partnered with U.S. Integrity, a company heavily involved in monitoring sports wagering activity and ensuring integrity.

To those unaware, the sport is an off-shoot from the UFC, and shares a similar rule book. Participants are split into weight classes, for which the weight classes and weight allowances are the same as set forth in the Unified Rules of MMA. The same weigh-in process is followed, and failure to comply shares the same consequences.

The safety requirements for fighters read as follows:

  • All participants must wear a mouth guard
  • All participants must wear cotton inner ear protectors
  • No body grease, gels, balms, lotions oils or other substances may be applied to the hair, face or body (including excessive water)
  • No head, facial, neck, arm, hand or finger jewelry of any kind is permitted
  • Fingernails must be cut below the fingertips and must be rounded

To provide an overly simple description of Power Slap, it’s two fighters slapping one another as hard as possible. There is an extensive description of a ‘permitted slap’, the ‘permitted target area’ and the ‘wind-up rule’.

The ‘wind-up’ rule dictates the Striker must elect verbally and with hand signals the hand the Striker will use to strike, and the number 1, 2 or 3 in which the strike will land. The numbers are as follows:

  • 1 means no wind-up; a line-up is permitted but not required
  • 2 means: after the hand is lined up, 1 practice motion is taken, then a strike lands on 2
  • 3 means: after the hand is lined up, 2 practice motions are taken, then a strike lands on

The first striker is determined by coin toss, and 60 seconds are provided to recover and return a slap. Points are rewarded by judges in each round for ‘slap damage and effectiveness’ and ‘defender reaction and recovery’. Fouls can be given for ‘clubbing, stepping, illegal windup and flinching’.

“We are seeing significant interest in Power Slap from a sports betting perspective, and as we have stated before, Power Slap provides a unique and intriguing betting opportunity for fans,” said Frank Lamicella, President of Power Slap.

Wyoming Gambling Commission have also added World Chase Tag, Street League Skateboarding and the US Football League to its betting catalog in 2023. Wyoming sports betting is available online statewide, and offers a substantial amount of sports. The catalog is on the more liberal side of US sports betting regulators.

While Wyoming bettors can now wager on Power Slap, California sports betting is off the cards until 2023 at earliest following the crushing defeat at the ballots in November 2022. Sports betting in Texas has had additional momentum, and the same can apply for those dreaming of betting on sports in Florida. Whether or not they’ll get beyond initial legislature sessions is a different question, however.