BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Brad Pickett vs.
Michael McDonald

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

5-9-0 Brad Pickett · UFC
6-3-0 Michael McDonald · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

5-9-0
UFC record
6-3-0
Bantamweight
Division (benchmark)
Bantamweight
47.9
AgeΔ 12.3 yrs
35.6
5'6"
HeightΔ 3"
5'9"
68"
ReachΔ 2"
70"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
112.6
Layoff (months)Δ 8.2 mo
120.8
LLLWL
Last 5 (newest first)
LWLWL
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.

Michael McDonald is a submission threat — 1.31 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.28 Bantamweight norm.
Michael McDonald carries real power — 0.94 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.30 Bantamweight norm.
Brad Pickett hunts takedowns — 2.07 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.12 Bantamweight 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.

Brad Pickett

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

In the UFC: 2-5 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +0.9 wins over .500

Michael McDonald

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

In the UFC: 3-3 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

4653.06/min · norm 3.52
Sig. strikes landed
2162.70/min · norm 3.52
7284.79/min · norm 3.58
Sig. strikes absorbed
2262.82/min · norm 3.58
32.4%norm 43.4%
Striking accuracy
42.7%norm 43.4%
56.1%norm 56.6%
Striking defense
57.2%norm 56.6%
30.30/15 · norm 0.30
Knockdowns
50.94/15 · norm 0.30

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

Brad Pickett

Distance 86.4% (norm 87.4%) · Clinch 6.3% (norm 5.7%) · Ground 7.2% (norm 6.5%)

Michael McDonald

Distance 88.3% (norm 87.4%) · Clinch 6.9% (norm 5.7%) · Ground 4.7% (norm 6.5%)

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

Brad Pickett

Head 80.8% (norm 77.4%) · Body 9.1% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 10.1% (norm 8.4%)

Michael McDonald

Head 89.3% (norm 77.4%) · Body 5.9% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 4.7% (norm 8.4%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Pickett L/AAccBantamweight med McDonald L/AAccBantamweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 351 / 1240 28.3% 39.0% 180 / 447 40.3% 39.0%
In the clinch 56 / 91 61.5% 68.7% 19 / 35 54.3% 68.7%
On the ground 58 / 104 55.8% 70.2% 17 / 24 too few to rate 70.2%
BY TARGET
To the head 304 / 1159 26.2% 34.9% 171 / 452 37.8% 34.9%
To the body 67 / 131 51.1% 66.8% 23 / 30 76.7% 66.8%
To the legs 94 / 145 64.8% 79.4% 22 / 24 too few to rate 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 Pickett L/AOpp accBantamweight med vs McDonald L/AOpp accBantamweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 582 / 1449 40.2% 39.3% 174 / 442 39.4% 39.3%
In the clinch 69 / 105 65.7% 70.4% 13 / 35 37.1% 70.4%
On the ground 77 / 104 74.0% 72.4% 39 / 51 76.5% 72.4%
BY TARGET
To the head 570 / 1411 40.4% 34.9% 131 / 407 32.2% 34.9%
To the body 92 / 171 53.8% 66.0% 60 / 80 75.0% 66.0%
To the legs 66 / 76 86.8% 79.1% 35 / 41 85.4% 79.1%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

2140.4% acc · 2.07/15 · norm 1.12
Takedowns landed
666.7% acc · 1.12/15 · norm 1.12
2360.5% def · norm 66.7%
Takedowns stopped
1052.6% def · norm 66.7%
32:4721.6% of cage time · norm 17.4%
Control time
7:008.7% of cage time · norm 17.4%
14:491:27 per 15 · norm 2:24
Time under control
20:453:53 per 15 · norm 2:24
20.20/15 · norm 0.28
Submission attempts
71.31/15 · norm 0.28

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.