BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Anthony Pettis vs.
Donald Cerrone

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

11-9-0 Anthony Pettis · UFC
23-14-0 (1 NC) Donald Cerrone · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

11-9-0
UFC record
23-14-0 (1 NC)
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
39.5
AgeΔ 3.9 yrs
43.4
5'10"
HeightΔ 3"
6'1"
72"
ReachΔ 1"
73"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
67.5
Layoff (months)Δ 18.4 mo
49.1
WWLLW
Last 5 (newest first)
LLNCLL
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.

Donald Cerrone carries real power — 0.84 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.25 Lightweight norm.
Anthony Pettis rarely shoots — 0.52 takedowns per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight norm.
Donald Cerrone absorbs 5.11 sig. strikes per minute, well above the 3.37 Lightweight norm — hittable.
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.

Anthony Pettis

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

In the UFC: 10-8 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +5.7 wins over .500

Donald Cerrone

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

In the UFC: 20-13 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.8 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

7693.32/min · norm 3.42
Sig. strikes landed
17484.90/min · norm 3.42
9243.99/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed
18255.11/min · norm 3.37
48.4%norm 43.5%
Striking accuracy
47.4%norm 43.5%
52.9%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
51.6%norm 56.3%
40.26/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
200.84/15 · norm 0.25

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

Anthony Pettis

Distance 89.7% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 5.0% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 5.3% (norm 8.0%)

Donald Cerrone

Distance 89.1% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 6.2% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 4.7% (norm 8.0%)

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

Anthony Pettis

Head 76.0% (norm 78.2%) · Body 16.0% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 8.1% (norm 7.9%)

Donald Cerrone

Head 71.3% (norm 78.2%) · Body 16.0% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 12.8% (norm 7.9%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Pettis L/AAccLightweight med Cerrone L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 657 / 1425 46.1% 37.9% 1478 / 3290 44.9% 37.9%
In the clinch 53 / 79 67.1% 67.3% 151 / 229 65.9% 67.3%
On the ground 59 / 85 69.4% 69.1% 119 / 172 69.2% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 497 / 1207 41.2% 35.0% 893 / 2630 34.0% 35.0%
To the body 162 / 254 63.8% 69.1% 442 / 589 75.0% 69.1%
To the legs 110 / 128 85.9% 81.9% 413 / 472 87.5% 81.9%

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 (Lightweight: 201 fighters · Lightweight: 201 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 Pettis L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Cerrone L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 686 / 1607 42.7% 38.9% 1558 / 3375 46.2% 38.9%
In the clinch 136 / 190 71.6% 68.6% 211 / 305 69.2% 68.6%
On the ground 102 / 165 61.8% 68.0% 56 / 88 63.6% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 519 / 1408 36.9% 35.1% 1069 / 2721 39.3% 35.1%
To the body 222 / 328 67.7% 68.1% 444 / 668 66.5% 68.1%
To the legs 183 / 226 81.0% 81.5% 312 / 379 82.3% 81.5%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

840.0% acc · 0.52/15 · norm 1.38
Takedowns landed
2428.9% acc · 1.01/15 · norm 1.38
5755.9% def · norm 64.0%
Takedowns stopped
6288.6% def · norm 64.0%
26:5911.6% of cage time · norm 19.5%
Control time
38:3610.8% of cage time · norm 19.5%
74:394:49 per 15 · norm 2:46
Time under control
19:550:50 per 15 · norm 2:46
110.71/15 · norm 0.49
Submission attempts
110.46/15 · norm 0.49

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.