BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Dustin Poirier vs.
Khabib Nurmagomedov

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

22-9-0 (1 NC) Dustin Poirier · UFC
13-0-0 Khabib Nurmagomedov · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

22-9-0 (1 NC)
UFC record
13-0-0
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
37.5
AgeΔ 0.4 yrs
37.9
5'9"
HeightΔ 1"
5'10"
72"
ReachΔ 2"
70"
Southpaw
Stance
Orthodox
12.6
Layoff (months)Δ 56.8 mo
69.4
LLWLW
Last 5 (newest first)
WWWWW
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.

Khabib Nurmagomedov hunts takedowns — 5.32 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight norm.
Khabib Nurmagomedov owns the mat — in control 55% of cage time, vs a 20% Lightweight norm.
Dustin Poirier carries real power — 0.65 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.25 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.

Dustin Poirier

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 229
Tier 3 — regional circuit 81

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.44 · 22 tier-1/2 wins · 23 finish wins over 41 documented bouts

In the UFC: 15-9 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +4.0 wins over .500

Khabib Nurmagomedov

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

In the UFC: 10-0 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +4.2 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

18615.34/min · norm 3.42
Sig. strikes landed
7054.10/min · norm 3.42
16274.67/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed
3011.75/min · norm 3.37
50.0%norm 43.5%
Striking accuracy
48.8%norm 43.5%
52.3%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
65.4%norm 56.3%
150.65/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
20.17/15 · norm 0.25

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

Dustin Poirier

Distance 81.8% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 11.3% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 7.0% (norm 8.0%)

Khabib Nurmagomedov

Distance 61.1% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 2.8% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 36.1% (norm 8.0%)

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

Dustin Poirier

Head 87.2% (norm 78.2%) · Body 6.7% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 6.2% (norm 7.9%)

Khabib Nurmagomedov

Head 91.3% (norm 78.2%) · Body 6.0% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 2.7% (norm 7.9%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Poirier L/AAccLightweight med Nurmagomedov L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 1415 / 3044 46.5% 37.9% 298 / 883 33.7% 37.9%
In the clinch 280 / 419 66.8% 67.3% 27 / 40 67.5% 67.3%
On the ground 166 / 259 64.1% 69.1% 380 / 521 72.9% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 1490 / 3244 45.9% 35.0% 604 / 1318 45.8% 35.0%
To the body 182 / 249 73.1% 69.1% 65 / 87 74.7% 69.1%
To the legs 189 / 229 82.5% 81.9% 36 / 39 92.3% 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 Poirier L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Nurmagomedov L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 1285 / 2951 43.5% 38.9% 260 / 822 31.6% 38.9%
In the clinch 197 / 277 71.1% 68.6% 30 / 35 85.7% 68.6%
On the ground 145 / 184 78.8% 68.0% 11 / 13 too few to rate 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 1048 / 2658 39.4% 35.1% 167 / 661 25.3% 35.1%
To the body 364 / 491 74.1% 68.1% 88 / 155 56.8% 68.1%
To the legs 215 / 263 81.7% 81.5% 46 / 54 85.2% 81.5%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

2835.9% acc · 1.21/15 · norm 1.38
Takedowns landed
6148.0% acc · 5.32/15 · norm 1.38
5863.0% def · norm 64.0%
Takedowns stopped
1184.6% def · norm 64.0%
70:0220.1% of cage time · norm 19.5%
Control time
94:4155.1% of cage time · norm 19.5%
70:423:02 per 15 · norm 2:46
Time under control
2:330:13 per 15 · norm 2:46
251.08/15 · norm 0.49
Submission attempts
90.79/15 · norm 0.49

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.