Gilbert Melendez vs.
Benson Henderson
Two full careers, measured against each man's own division and against each other — the tape, the read, and every number behind them.
The men, measured.
Frame, age, layoff and recent form — green marks the edge on each line.
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.
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.
Gilbert Melendez
Full career not yet synced for Gilbert Melendez — tier grading appears once their record documentation lands (refreshes weekly).
In the UFC: 1-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.9 wins over .500
Benson Henderson
Full career not yet synced for Benson Henderson — tier grading appears once their record documentation lands (refreshes weekly).
In the UFC: 10-3 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +4.5 wins over .500
The stand-up battle.
Career totals; norms are the medians of each man's own division.
Significant strikes — landed & absorbed
Where the fight happens (share of sig. strike attempts)
Gilbert Melendez
Distance 93.5% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 5.3% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 1.2% (norm 8.0%)
Benson Henderson
Distance 74.4% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 12.3% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 13.3% (norm 8.0%)
What they throw (share of sig. strike attempts by target)
Gilbert Melendez
Head 89.7% (norm 78.2%) · Body 7.3% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 3.0% (norm 7.9%)
Benson Henderson
Head 66.8% (norm 78.2%) · Body 17.9% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 15.3% (norm 7.9%)
Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone
Green ≥ division median, red below. UFCStats tracks position and target as separate splits.
| Zone | Melendez L/A | Acc | Lightweight med | Henderson L/A | Acc | Lightweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 257 / 953 | 27.0% | 37.9% | 520 / 1340 | 38.8% | 37.9% |
| In the clinch | 30 / 54 | 55.6% | 67.3% | 154 / 222 | 69.4% | 67.3% |
| On the ground | 7 / 12 | too few to rate | 69.1% | 152 / 239 | 63.6% | 69.1% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 229 / 914 | 25.1% | 35.0% | 362 / 1203 | 30.1% | 35.0% |
| To the body | 45 / 74 | 60.8% | 69.1% | 247 / 323 | 76.5% | 69.1% |
| To the legs | 20 / 31 | 64.5% | 81.9% | 217 / 275 | 78.9% | 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 Melendez L/A | Opp acc | Lightweight med | vs Henderson L/A | Opp acc | Lightweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 388 / 983 | 39.5% | 38.9% | 364 / 1172 | 31.1% | 38.9% |
| In the clinch | 21 / 33 | 63.6% | 68.6% | 104 / 157 | 66.2% | 68.6% |
| On the ground | 16 / 24 | too few to rate | 68.0% | 17 / 40 | 42.5% | 68.0% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 228 / 779 | 29.3% | 35.1% | 216 / 984 | 22.0% | 35.1% |
| To the body | 88 / 131 | 67.2% | 68.1% | 166 / 250 | 66.4% | 68.1% |
| To the legs | 109 / 130 | 83.8% | 81.5% | 103 / 135 | 76.3% | 81.5% |
The ground war.
Takedowns, control and submissions — career totals with each man's per-minute rates against his division norm.
Bars compare the two men's rates (per-minute / per-15 figures), not raw totals — Henderson has more cage time on record.