Joe Riggs vs.
Matt Hughes
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.
Joe Riggs
Full career not yet synced for Joe Riggs — tier grading appears once their record documentation lands (refreshes weekly).
In the UFC: 1-5 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.6 wins over .500
Matt Hughes
Full career not yet synced for Matt Hughes — tier grading appears once their record documentation lands (refreshes weekly).
In the UFC: 10-6 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.1 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)
Joe Riggs
Distance 46.2% (norm 81.2%) · Clinch 19.1% (norm 9.4%) · Ground 34.8% (norm 8.1%)
Matt Hughes
Distance 44.0% (norm 81.2%) · Clinch 6.3% (norm 9.4%) · Ground 49.6% (norm 8.1%)
What they throw (share of sig. strike attempts by target)
Joe Riggs
Head 88.6% (norm 78.2%) · Body 8.0% (norm 12.4%) · Legs 3.4% (norm 8.4%)
Matt Hughes
Head 81.3% (norm 78.2%) · Body 13.0% (norm 12.4%) · Legs 5.7% (norm 8.4%)
Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone
Green ≥ division median, red below. UFCStats tracks position and target as separate splits.
| Zone | Riggs L/A | Acc | Welterweight med | Hughes L/A | Acc | Welterweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 62 / 150 | 41.3% | 38.6% | 153 / 425 | 36.0% | 38.6% |
| In the clinch | 37 / 62 | 59.7% | 67.8% | 46 / 61 | 75.4% | 67.8% |
| On the ground | 66 / 113 | 58.4% | 67.2% | 332 / 479 | 69.3% | 67.2% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 136 / 288 | 47.2% | 37.2% | 364 / 785 | 46.4% | 37.2% |
| To the body | 19 / 26 | 73.1% | 70.7% | 117 / 125 | 93.6% | 70.7% |
| To the legs | 10 / 11 | too few to rate | 82.9% | 50 / 55 | 90.9% | 82.9% |
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 (Welterweight: 182 fighters · Welterweight: 182 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 Riggs L/A | Opp acc | Welterweight med | vs Hughes L/A | Opp acc | Welterweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 59 / 173 | 34.1% | 39.0% | 138 / 430 | 32.1% | 39.0% |
| In the clinch | 47 / 66 | 71.2% | 68.9% | 49 / 62 | 79.0% | 68.9% |
| On the ground | 22 / 30 | 73.3% | 68.0% | 99 / 136 | 72.8% | 68.0% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 77 / 192 | 40.1% | 35.6% | 196 / 503 | 39.0% | 35.6% |
| To the body | 30 / 47 | 63.8% | 69.6% | 63 / 87 | 72.4% | 69.6% |
| To the legs | 21 / 30 | 70.0% | 82.1% | 27 / 38 | 71.1% | 82.1% |
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 — Hughes has more cage time on record.