BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Grant Dawson vs.
Manuel Torres

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

12-2-1 Grant Dawson · UFC
5-2-0 Manuel Torres · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

12-2-1
UFC record
5-2-0
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
32
AgeΔ 1 yrs
31
5'10"
HeightΔ 0"
5'10"
72"
ReachΔ 1"
73"
Switch
Stance
Switch
3
Layoff (months)Δ 1.7 mo
1.3
WLWWW
Last 5 (newest first)
LWWLW
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.

Manuel Torres carries real power — 2.93 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.25 Lightweight norm.
Grant Dawson owns the mat — in control 65% of cage time, vs a 20% Lightweight norm.
Grant Dawson hunts takedowns — 3.62 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.

Grant Dawson

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 132
Tier 3 — regional circuit 101

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.65 · 13 tier-1/2 wins · 18 finish wins over 27 documented bouts

In the UFC: 10-2 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.4 wins over .500

Manuel Torres

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 62
Tier 3 — regional circuit 102

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.26 · 6 tier-1/2 wins · 16 finish wins over 20 documented bouts

In the UFC: 3-2 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

5283.11/min · norm 3.42
Sig. strikes landed
1246.05/min · norm 3.42
3742.20/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed
914.44/min · norm 3.37
51.2%norm 43.5%
Striking accuracy
55.6%norm 43.5%
44.8%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
47.7%norm 56.3%
10.09/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
42.93/15 · norm 0.25

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

Grant Dawson

Distance 64.1% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 6.3% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 29.6% (norm 8.0%)

Manuel Torres

Distance 81.6% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 8.1% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 10.3% (norm 8.0%)

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

Grant Dawson

Head 77.2% (norm 78.2%) · Body 15.2% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 7.6% (norm 7.9%)

Manuel Torres

Head 79.4% (norm 78.2%) · Body 16.1% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 4.5% (norm 7.9%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Dawson L/AAccLightweight med Torres L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 265 / 662 40.0% 37.9% 89 / 182 48.9% 37.9%
In the clinch 52 / 65 80.0% 67.3% 16 / 18 too few to rate 67.3%
On the ground 211 / 305 69.2% 69.1% 19 / 23 too few to rate 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 362 / 797 45.4% 35.0% 83 / 177 46.9% 35.0%
To the body 100 / 157 63.7% 69.1% 33 / 36 91.7% 69.1%
To the legs 66 / 78 84.6% 81.9% 8 / 10 too few to rate 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 Dawson L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Torres L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 272 / 549 49.5% 38.9% 60 / 127 47.2% 38.9%
In the clinch 44 / 50 88.0% 68.6% 9 / 11 too few to rate 68.6%
On the ground 58 / 79 73.4% 68.0% 22 / 36 61.1% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 247 / 509 48.5% 35.1% 58 / 121 47.9% 35.1%
To the body 85 / 119 71.4% 68.1% 10 / 18 too few to rate 68.1%
To the legs 42 / 50 84.0% 81.5% 23 / 35 65.7% 81.5%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

4139.0% acc · 3.62/15 · norm 1.38
Takedowns landed
266.7% acc · 1.46/15 · norm 1.38
770.0% def · norm 64.0%
Takedowns stopped
975.0% def · norm 64.0%
110:2665.1% of cage time · norm 19.5%
Control time
1:398.0% of cage time · norm 19.5%
12:051:04 per 15 · norm 2:46
Time under control
2:141:38 per 15 · norm 2:46
141.24/15 · norm 0.49
Submission attempts
10.73/15 · norm 0.49

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.