BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Alexander Gustafsson vs.
Phil Davis

Two full careers, measured against each man's own division and against each other — the tape, the read, and every number behind them.

10-8-0 Alexander Gustafsson · UFC
9-3-0 (1 NC) Phil Davis · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

Frame, age, layoff and recent form — green marks the edge on each line.

10-8-0
UFC record
9-3-0 (1 NC)
Light Heavyweight
Division (benchmark)
Light Heavyweight
39.6
AgeΔ 2.3 yrs
41.9
6'5"
HeightΔ 3"
6'2"
79"
ReachΔ 0"
79"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
48.5
Layoff (months)Δ 89.9 mo
138.4
LLLLW
Last 5 (newest first)
LWLWW
The read

What the numbers say.

Scouting notes, auto-generated — only stats deviating more than 25% from the division median make this list. No narratives, just deviations.

Phil Davis hunts takedowns — 2.76 per 15 minutes, vs a 0.87 Light Heavyweight norm.
Phil Davis owns the mat — in control 34% of cage time, vs a 16% Light Heavyweight norm.
Alexander Gustafsson carries real power — 0.72 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.40 Light Heavyweight norm.
Level of competition

Who did they actually beat?

Full-career records re-graded by the tier of opposition — the same grading the Contender Series pick model uses. Records built on tier-4 competition are worth less than records built on killers.

Alexander Gustafsson

Full career not yet synced for Alexander Gustafsson — tier grading appears once their record documentation lands (refreshes weekly).

In the UFC: 8-8 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.9 wins over .500

Phil Davis

Full career not yet synced for Phil Davis — tier grading appears once their record documentation lands (refreshes weekly).

In the UFC: 6-3 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.5 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

Career totals; norms are the medians of each man's own division.

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

7514.03/min · norm 3.41
Sig. strikes landed
4852.87/min · norm 3.41
6593.53/min · norm 3.35
Sig. strikes absorbed
2241.33/min · norm 3.35
40.7%norm 48.3%
Striking accuracy
34.5%norm 48.3%
51.4%norm 52.9%
Striking defense
72.3%norm 52.9%
90.72/15 · norm 0.40
Knockdowns
00.00/15 · norm 0.40

Where the fight happens (share of sig. strike attempts)

Alexander Gustafsson

Distance 85.8% (norm 80.5%) · Clinch 5.7% (norm 8.6%) · Ground 8.5% (norm 10.4%)

Phil Davis

Distance 73.9% (norm 80.5%) · Clinch 6.3% (norm 8.6%) · Ground 19.8% (norm 10.4%)

What they throw (share of sig. strike attempts by target)

Alexander Gustafsson

Head 80.4% (norm 79.2%) · Body 11.1% (norm 11.7%) · Legs 8.5% (norm 9.7%)

Phil Davis

Head 75.0% (norm 79.2%) · Body 18.0% (norm 11.7%) · Legs 7.0% (norm 9.7%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

Green ≥ division median, red below. UFCStats tracks position and target as separate splits.

Zone Gustafsson L/AAccLight Heavyweight med Davis L/AAccLight Heavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 575 / 1583 36.3% 41.4% 241 / 1039 23.2% 41.4%
In the clinch 59 / 106 55.7% 70.9% 62 / 89 69.7% 70.9%
On the ground 117 / 156 75.0% 72.3% 182 / 278 65.5% 72.3%
BY TARGET
To the head 523 / 1484 35.2% 38.9% 272 / 1055 25.8% 38.9%
To the body 110 / 205 53.7% 71.9% 149 / 253 58.9% 71.9%
To the legs 118 / 156 75.6% 81.8% 64 / 98 65.3% 81.8%

Zones with fewer than 25 attempts are marked "too few to rate". Each fighter is measured against the median of leaderboard-eligible fighters in his own division (Light Heavyweight: 93 fighters · Light Heavyweight: 93 fighters).

What lands on them Opponents' accuracy against each man

Green ≤ division median — harder to hit than the typical man in his division.

Zone vs Gustafsson L/AOpp accLight Heavyweight med vs Davis L/AOpp accLight Heavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 496 / 1131 43.9% 40.4% 182 / 730 24.9% 40.4%
In the clinch 101 / 148 68.2% 68.7% 24 / 54 44.4% 68.7%
On the ground 62 / 78 79.5% 70.4% 18 / 26 69.2% 70.4%
BY TARGET
To the head 398 / 992 40.1% 37.5% 150 / 678 22.1% 37.5%
To the body 102 / 162 63.0% 72.3% 37 / 74 50.0% 72.3%
To the legs 159 / 203 78.3% 83.0% 37 / 58 63.8% 83.0%
Grappling

The ground war.

Takedowns, control and submissions — career totals with each man's per-minute rates against his division norm.

1939.6% acc · 1.53/15 · norm 0.87
Takedowns landed
3135.6% acc · 2.76/15 · norm 0.87
4183.7% def · norm 66.7%
Takedowns stopped
1372.2% def · norm 66.7%
30:4416.5% of cage time · norm 16.5%
Control time
56:5033.7% of cage time · norm 16.5%
17:541:26 per 15 · norm 2:48
Time under control
9:370:51 per 15 · norm 2:48
50.40/15 · norm 0.27
Submission attempts
60.53/15 · norm 0.27

Bars compare the two men's rates (per-minute / per-15 figures), not raw totals — Gustafsson has more cage time on record.

Next move

Let the engine settle it.