BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Alistair Overeem vs.
Augusto Sakai

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

12-8-0 Alistair Overeem · UFC
5-4-0 Augusto Sakai · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

12-8-0
UFC record
5-4-0
Heavyweight
Division (benchmark)
Heavyweight
46.2
AgeΔ 11 yrs
35.2
6'4"
HeightΔ 1"
6'3"
80"
ReachΔ 3"
77"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
65.9
Layoff (months)Δ 24.6 mo
41.3
LWWLW
Last 5 (newest first)
WLLLL
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.

Alistair Overeem carries real power — 0.81 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.28 Heavyweight norm.
Augusto Sakai rarely shoots — 0.30 takedowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.95 Heavyweight norm.
Alistair Overeem is accurate with head shots — lands 65%, vs a 39% 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.

Alistair Overeem

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

In the UFC: 10-6 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.8 wins over .500

Augusto Sakai

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

In the UFC: 1-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.7 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

7153.87/min · norm 3.36
Sig. strikes landed
4304.32/min · norm 3.36
5893.19/min · norm 3.19
Sig. strikes absorbed
4304.32/min · norm 3.19
74.3%norm 47.8%
Striking accuracy
49.3%norm 47.8%
51.1%norm 52.5%
Striking defense
45.6%norm 52.5%
100.81/15 · norm 0.28
Knockdowns
10.15/15 · norm 0.28

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

Alistair Overeem

Distance 50.1% (norm 79.5%) · Clinch 17.3% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 32.6% (norm 9.3%)

Augusto Sakai

Distance 75.8% (norm 79.5%) · Clinch 21.4% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 2.8% (norm 9.3%)

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

Alistair Overeem

Head 61.6% (norm 79.2%) · Body 27.2% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 11.1% (norm 7.6%)

Augusto Sakai

Head 72.6% (norm 79.2%) · Body 19.3% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 8.1% (norm 7.6%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Overeem L/AAccHeavyweight med Sakai L/AAccHeavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 314 / 482 65.1% 40.1% 260 / 661 39.3% 40.1%
In the clinch 144 / 166 86.7% 70.6% 150 / 187 80.2% 70.6%
On the ground 257 / 314 81.8% 70.2% 20 / 24 too few to rate 70.2%
BY TARGET
To the head 386 / 593 65.1% 38.9% 255 / 633 40.3% 38.9%
To the body 231 / 262 88.2% 76.8% 121 / 168 72.0% 76.8%
To the legs 98 / 107 91.6% 87.8% 54 / 71 76.1% 87.8%

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 (Heavyweight: 93 fighters · 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 Overeem L/AOpp accHeavyweight med vs Sakai L/AOpp accHeavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 357 / 887 40.2% 40.7% 285 / 610 46.7% 40.7%
In the clinch 155 / 220 70.5% 70.6% 70 / 86 81.4% 70.6%
On the ground 77 / 98 78.6% 72.0% 75 / 95 78.9% 72.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 404 / 958 42.2% 38.8% 249 / 581 42.9% 38.8%
To the body 126 / 166 75.9% 75.1% 125 / 144 86.8% 75.1%
To the legs 59 / 81 72.8% 84.4% 56 / 66 84.8% 84.4%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

1034.5% acc · 0.81/15 · norm 0.95
Takedowns landed
240.0% acc · 0.30/15 · norm 0.95
1263.2% def · norm 64.3%
Takedowns stopped
637.5% def · norm 64.3%
48:0926.1% of cage time · norm 17.2%
Control time
17:0917.2% of cage time · norm 17.2%
18:531:31 per 15 · norm 2:28
Time under control
19:372:57 per 15 · norm 2:28
30.24/15 · norm 0.16
Submission attempts
00.00/15 · norm 0.16

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.