The next matchup was the originally scheduled first matchup, so Max declined to bet on this one and simply sat back to watch the show. It was artful, and they weren't pulling the punches as much as Max had suspected that they would, leaving the ring a bloody mess by the time the first round had ended.
Although he knew that they were just putting on a show for the crowd, one of them would still advance to the later fights that night, so Max watched carefully to gain more information on how they moved, what moves they seemed to know and not know, and the general level of agility that they displayed.
Once you factored in another twenty percent for how much they were likely holding back, it gave a solid baseline on what he could expect in a fight with them.