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Ion Cutelaba vs. Magomed Ankalaev

UFC 9-11-1 vs. 13-2-1 (1 NC)

Tale of the tape

Green = edge on that line
9-11-1
UFC record
13-2-1 (1 NC)
Light Heavyweight
Division (benchmark)
Light Heavyweight
32
AgeΔ 2 yrs
34
6'1"
HeightΔ 2"
6'3"
75"
ReachΔ 0"
75"
Southpaw
Stance
Orthodox
4
Layoff (months)Δ 1.1 mo
2.9
LWLWW
Last 5 (newest first)
WLWWW

The read

Stats 25%+ off the division median
Ion Cutelaba hunts takedowns — 4.02 per 15 minutes, vs a 0.87 Light Heavyweight norm.
Magomed Ankalaev owns the mat — in control 28% of cage time, vs a 17% Light Heavyweight norm.
Magomed Ankalaev defends head shots well — opponents land just 23%, vs a 38% Light Heavyweight norm.

Level of competition

Full-career record by tier of opposition

Ion Cutelaba

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 911
Tier 2 — LFA / Cage Warriors (feeder belts) 01
Tier 3 — regional circuit 110

Tier-weighted record quality: 0.77 · 9 tier-1/2 wins · 17 finish wins over 34 documented bouts

In the UFC: 5-9 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.5 wins over .500

Magomed Ankalaev

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 132
Tier 3 — regional circuit 80

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.66 · 13 tier-1/2 wins · 11 finish wins over 25 documented bouts

In the UFC: 10-1 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.8 wins over .500

Striking

Career totals · norms = own-division medians

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

6944.13/min · norm 3.48
Sig. strikes landed
7443.52/min · norm 3.48
5753.42/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed lower is better
5282.49/min · norm 3.37
43.6%norm 48.45%
Striking accuracy
52.4%norm 48.45%
46.1%norm 52.75%
Striking defense
55.3%norm 52.75%
20.18/15 · norm 0.40
Knockdowns
70.50/15 · norm 0.40

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

Ion Cutelaba

Distance 76.0% (norm 80.5%) · Clinch 12.4% (norm 8.8%) · Ground 11.6% (norm 10.6%)

Magomed Ankalaev

Distance 80.1% (norm 80.5%) · Clinch 6.8% (norm 8.8%) · Ground 13.2% (norm 10.6%)

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

Ion Cutelaba

Head 82.2% (norm 78.5%) · Body 10.9% (norm 11.8%) · Legs 6.9% (norm 9.7%)

Magomed Ankalaev

Head 69.3% (norm 78.5%) · Body 20.8% (norm 11.8%) · Legs 9.9% (norm 9.7%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Cutelaba L/AAccLight Heavyweight med Ankalaev L/AAccLight Heavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 416 / 1209 34.4% 41.5% 534 / 1138 46.9% 41.5%
In the clinch 138 / 198 69.7% 70.8% 77 / 96 80.2% 70.8%
On the ground 140 / 184 76.1% 72.9% 133 / 187 71.1% 72.9%
BY TARGET
To the head 480 / 1308 36.7% 39.2% 402 / 985 40.8% 39.2%
To the body 124 / 174 71.3% 72.0% 215 / 295 72.9% 72.0%
To the legs 90 / 109 82.6% 82.1% 127 / 141 90.1% 82.1%

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 (Light Heavyweight: 94 fighters · Light Heavyweight: 94 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 Cutelaba L/AOpp accLight Heavyweight med vs Ankalaev L/AOpp accLight Heavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 445 / 888 50.1% 40.6% 463 / 1089 42.5% 40.6%
In the clinch 71 / 99 71.7% 68.8% 39 / 52 75.0% 68.8%
On the ground 59 / 80 73.8% 70.4% 26 / 39 66.7% 70.4%
BY TARGET
To the head 429 / 897 47.8% 37.7% 155 / 683 22.7% 37.7%
To the body 74 / 93 79.6% 72.9% 115 / 192 59.9% 72.9%
To the legs 72 / 77 93.5% 83.1% 258 / 305 84.6% 83.1%

Grappling

Takedowns, control, submissions vs. division norm
4551.1% acc · 4.02/15 · norm 0.87
Takedowns landed
1224.5% acc · 0.85/15 · norm 0.87
3276.2% def · norm 66.7%
Takedowns stopped
2187.5% def · norm 66.7%
38:5823.2% of cage time · norm 17.1%
Control time
60:0728.4% of cage time · norm 17.1%
30:442:44 per 15 · norm 2:50
Time under control lower is better
6:440:28 per 15 · norm 2:50
30.27/15 · norm 0.28
Submission attempts
30.21/15 · norm 0.28

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