BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Diego Ferreira vs.
Michael Johnson

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

10-7-0 Diego Ferreira · UFC
16-16-0 Michael Johnson · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

10-7-0
UFC record
16-16-0
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
41.5
AgeΔ 1.3 yrs
40.2
5'9"
HeightΔ 1"
5'10"
74"
ReachΔ 1"
73"
Orthodox
Stance
Southpaw
10.7
Layoff (months)Δ 5.7 mo
5
LLWWL
Last 5 (newest first)
LWWWL
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 Johnson carries real power — 0.53 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.25 Lightweight norm.
Michael Johnson rarely shoots — 0.57 takedowns per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight norm.
Diego Ferreira rarely shoots — 0.82 takedowns per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight 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.

Diego Ferreira

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

In the UFC: 7-7 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.1 wins over .500

Michael Johnson

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 1616
Tier 3 — regional circuit 84

Tier-weighted record quality: 0.54 · 16 tier-1/2 wins · 12 finish wins over 44 documented bouts

In the UFC: 11-11 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.3 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

7764.70/min · norm 3.42
Sig. strikes landed
15684.27/min · norm 3.42
5713.46/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed
13863.78/min · norm 3.37
39.8%norm 43.5%
Striking accuracy
39.6%norm 43.5%
55.9%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
58.8%norm 56.3%
30.27/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
130.53/15 · norm 0.25

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

Diego Ferreira

Distance 88.0% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 3.8% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 8.3% (norm 8.0%)

Michael Johnson

Distance 93.5% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 4.0% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 2.5% (norm 8.0%)

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

Diego Ferreira

Head 80.2% (norm 78.2%) · Body 16.1% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 3.7% (norm 7.9%)

Michael Johnson

Head 70.1% (norm 78.2%) · Body 21.9% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 8.0% (norm 7.9%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Ferreira L/AAccLightweight med Johnson L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 602 / 1716 35.1% 37.9% 1405 / 3703 37.9% 37.9%
In the clinch 50 / 74 67.6% 67.3% 101 / 157 64.3% 67.3%
On the ground 124 / 161 77.0% 69.1% 62 / 101 61.4% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 548 / 1564 35.0% 35.0% 829 / 2776 29.9% 35.0%
To the body 169 / 314 53.8% 69.1% 496 / 869 57.1% 69.1%
To the legs 59 / 73 80.8% 81.9% 243 / 316 76.9% 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 Ferreira L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Johnson L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 423 / 1065 39.7% 38.9% 1025 / 2854 35.9% 38.9%
In the clinch 42 / 62 67.7% 68.6% 96 / 140 68.6% 68.6%
On the ground 106 / 168 63.1% 68.0% 265 / 373 71.0% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 413 / 1069 38.6% 35.1% 923 / 2702 34.2% 35.1%
To the body 106 / 164 64.6% 68.1% 231 / 379 60.9% 68.1%
To the legs 52 / 62 83.9% 81.5% 232 / 286 81.1% 81.5%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

930.0% acc · 0.82/15 · norm 1.38
Takedowns landed
1438.9% acc · 0.57/15 · norm 1.38
4457.9% def · norm 64.0%
Takedowns stopped
8681.1% def · norm 64.0%
19:2311.7% of cage time · norm 19.5%
Control time
28:497.9% of cage time · norm 19.5%
39:493:37 per 15 · norm 2:46
Time under control
61:252:30 per 15 · norm 2:46
60.55/15 · norm 0.49
Submission attempts
10.04/15 · norm 0.49

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.