BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Ben Saunders vs.
Sergio Moraes

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

9-10-0 Ben Saunders · UFC
8-5-1 Sergio Moraes · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

9-10-0
UFC record
8-5-1
Welterweight
Division (benchmark)
Welterweight
43.3
AgeΔ 0.7 yrs
44
6'2"
HeightΔ 2"
6'0"
77"
ReachΔ 5"
72"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
79.7
Layoff (months)Δ 1 mo
80.7
LLLLW
Last 5 (newest first)
LLLWW
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.

Ben Saunders is a submission threat — 1.30 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.45 Welterweight norm.
Ben Saunders rarely shoots — 0.20 takedowns per 15 minutes, vs a 1.27 Welterweight norm.
Sergio Moraes is wasteful with clinch strikes — only 48% land, vs a 68% Welterweight 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.

Ben Saunders

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

In the UFC: 4-5 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.8 wins over .500

Sergio Moraes

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

In the UFC: 5-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.8 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

4863.23/min · norm 3.17
Sig. strikes landed
4232.42/min · norm 3.17
5383.58/min · norm 3.06
Sig. strikes absorbed
6523.73/min · norm 3.06
50.2%norm 44.9%
Striking accuracy
42.6%norm 44.9%
51.1%norm 55.25%
Striking defense
60.0%norm 55.25%
30.30/15 · norm 0.38
Knockdowns
10.09/15 · norm 0.38

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

Ben Saunders

Distance 71.9% (norm 81.2%) · Clinch 23.0% (norm 9.4%) · Ground 5.1% (norm 8.1%)

Sergio Moraes

Distance 93.9% (norm 81.2%) · Clinch 2.5% (norm 9.4%) · Ground 3.6% (norm 8.1%)

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

Ben Saunders

Head 66.2% (norm 78.2%) · Body 27.6% (norm 12.4%) · Legs 6.2% (norm 8.4%)

Sergio Moraes

Head 85.4% (norm 78.2%) · Body 11.5% (norm 12.4%) · Legs 3.1% (norm 8.4%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Saunders L/AAccWelterweight med Moraes L/AAccWelterweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 285 / 696 40.9% 38.6% 385 / 932 41.3% 38.6%
In the clinch 160 / 223 71.7% 67.8% 12 / 25 48.0% 67.8%
On the ground 41 / 49 83.7% 67.2% 26 / 36 72.2% 67.2%
BY TARGET
To the head 247 / 641 38.5% 37.2% 324 / 848 38.2% 37.2%
To the body 188 / 267 70.4% 70.7% 73 / 114 64.0% 70.7%
To the legs 51 / 60 85.0% 82.9% 26 / 31 83.9% 82.9%

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 (Welterweight: 182 fighters · Welterweight: 182 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 Saunders L/AOpp accWelterweight med vs Moraes L/AOpp accWelterweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 288 / 715 40.3% 39.0% 609 / 1563 39.0% 39.0%
In the clinch 108 / 178 60.7% 68.9% 17 / 22 too few to rate 68.9%
On the ground 142 / 208 68.3% 68.0% 26 / 44 59.1% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 374 / 880 42.5% 35.6% 413 / 1291 32.0% 35.6%
To the body 64 / 103 62.1% 69.6% 108 / 176 61.4% 69.6%
To the legs 100 / 118 84.7% 82.1% 131 / 162 80.9% 82.1%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

240.0% acc · 0.20/15 · norm 1.27
Takedowns landed
1438.9% acc · 1.20/15 · norm 1.27
3266.7% def · norm 63.9%
Takedowns stopped
375.0% def · norm 63.9%
15:5810.6% of cage time · norm 18.5%
Control time
29:5317.1% of cage time · norm 18.5%
69:286:55 per 15 · norm 3:15
Time under control
10:360:54 per 15 · norm 3:15
131.30/15 · norm 0.45
Submission attempts
50.43/15 · norm 0.45

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.