Aljamain Sterling vs. Jimmie Rivera

UFC 18-5-0 vs. 7-4-0

Tale of the tape

Green = edge on that line
18-5-0
UFC record
7-4-0
Bantamweight
Division (benchmark)
Bantamweight
37
AgeΔ 0 yrs
37
5'7"
HeightΔ 3"
5'4"
71"
ReachΔ 3"
68"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
3.4
Layoff (months)Δ 61.9 mo
65.3
WWLWL
Last 5 (newest first)
LWLLW

The read

Stats 25%+ off the division median
Aljamain Sterling is a submission threat — 0.64 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.28 Bantamweight norm.
Aljamain Sterling hunts takedowns — 2.54 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.12 Bantamweight norm.

Level of competition

Full-career record by tier of opposition

Aljamain Sterling

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 185
Tier 3 — regional circuit 80

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.61 · 18 tier-1/2 wins · 11 finish wins over 31 documented bouts

In the UFC: 16-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +4.3 wins over .500

Jimmie Rivera

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 114
Tier 3 — regional circuit 121

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.26 · 11 tier-1/2 wins · 6 finish wins over 28 documented bouts

In the UFC: 6-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.2 wins over .500

Striking

Career totals · norms = own-division medians

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

14074.26/min · norm 3.52
Sig. strikes landed
5524.03/min · norm 3.52
7102.15/min · norm 3.58
Sig. strikes absorbed
5353.90/min · norm 3.58
52.6%norm 43.4%
Striking accuracy
40.4%norm 43.4%
59.2%norm 56.6%
Striking defense
60.1%norm 56.6%
00.00/15 · norm 0.30
Knockdowns
30.33/15 · norm 0.30

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

Aljamain Sterling

Distance 77.2% (norm 87.4%) · Clinch 10.1% (norm 5.7%) · Ground 12.7% (norm 6.5%)

Jimmie Rivera

Distance 93.1% (norm 87.4%) · Clinch 5.7% (norm 5.7%) · Ground 1.2% (norm 6.5%)

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

Aljamain Sterling

Head 64.0% (norm 77.4%) · Body 23.3% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 12.7% (norm 8.4%)

Jimmie Rivera

Head 73.2% (norm 77.4%) · Body 14.2% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 12.6% (norm 8.4%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Sterling L/AAccBantamweight med Rivera L/AAccBantamweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 941 / 2066 45.5% 39.0% 485 / 1273 38.1% 39.0%
In the clinch 209 / 270 77.4% 68.7% 54 / 78 69.2% 68.7%
On the ground 257 / 339 75.8% 70.2% 13 / 17 too few to rate 70.2%
BY TARGET
To the head 703 / 1712 41.1% 34.9% 298 / 1001 29.8% 34.9%
To the body 443 / 622 71.2% 66.8% 114 / 194 58.8% 66.8%
To the legs 261 / 341 76.5% 79.4% 140 / 173 80.9% 79.4%

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 (Bantamweight: 117 fighters · Bantamweight: 117 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 Sterling L/AOpp accBantamweight med vs Rivera L/AOpp accBantamweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 567 / 1534 37.0% 39.3% 461 / 1246 37.0% 39.3%
In the clinch 92 / 134 68.7% 70.4% 64 / 79 81.0% 70.4%
On the ground 51 / 71 71.8% 72.4% 10 / 17 too few to rate 72.4%
BY TARGET
To the head 355 / 1230 28.9% 34.9% 251 / 955 26.3% 34.9%
To the body 190 / 302 62.9% 66.0% 147 / 219 67.1% 66.0%
To the legs 165 / 207 79.7% 79.1% 137 / 168 81.5% 79.1%

Grappling

Takedowns, control, submissions vs. division norm
5632.2% acc · 2.54/15 · norm 1.12
Takedowns landed
827.6% acc · 0.88/15 · norm 1.12
2244.9% def · norm 66.7%
Takedowns stopped
2592.6% def · norm 66.7%
109:3333.1% of cage time · norm 17.4%
Control time
9:447.1% of cage time · norm 17.4%
56:062:32 per 15 · norm 2:24
Time under control
8:180:54 per 15 · norm 2:24
140.64/15 · norm 0.28
Submission attempts
10.11/15 · norm 0.28

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