BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Joseph Benavidez vs.
Alex Perez

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

15-6-0 Joseph Benavidez · UFC
8-6-0 (1 NC) Alex Perez · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

15-6-0
UFC record
8-6-0 (1 NC)
Flyweight
Division (benchmark)
Flyweight
42
AgeΔ 7.6 yrs
34.4
5'4"
HeightΔ 2"
5'6"
65"
ReachΔ 0"
65"
Southpaw
Stance
Orthodox
65
Layoff (months)Δ 62.8 mo
2.2
LLLWW
Last 5 (newest first)
NCWLLW
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.

Alex Perez carries real power — 0.85 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.18 Flyweight norm.
Joseph Benavidez carries real power — 0.37 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.18 Flyweight norm.
Alex Perez hunts takedowns — 2.13 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.30 Flyweight 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.

Joseph Benavidez

Full career not yet synced for Joseph Benavidez — 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 +2.2 wins over .500

Alex Perez

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 96
Tier 2 — LFA / Cage Warriors (feeder belts) 10
Tier 3 — regional circuit 164

Tier-weighted record quality: 0.84 · 10 tier-1/2 wins · 14 finish wins over 37 documented bouts

In the UFC: 5-6 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.1 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

9383.91/min · norm 3.49
Sig. strikes landed
4454.21/min · norm 3.49
7223.01/min · norm 3.24
Sig. strikes absorbed
3423.23/min · norm 3.24
36.9%norm 44.6%
Striking accuracy
45.5%norm 44.6%
57.1%norm 56.4%
Striking defense
59.1%norm 56.4%
60.37/15 · norm 0.18
Knockdowns
60.85/15 · norm 0.18

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

Joseph Benavidez

Distance 89.3% (norm 85.1%) · Clinch 6.8% (norm 6.0%) · Ground 3.9% (norm 7.3%)

Alex Perez

Distance 83.0% (norm 85.1%) · Clinch 8.9% (norm 6.0%) · Ground 8.1% (norm 7.3%)

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

Joseph Benavidez

Head 71.2% (norm 75.9%) · Body 16.9% (norm 13.3%) · Legs 11.9% (norm 9.3%)

Alex Perez

Head 72.5% (norm 75.9%) · Body 12.9% (norm 13.3%) · Legs 14.6% (norm 9.3%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Benavidez L/AAccFlyweight med Perez L/AAccFlyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 764 / 2271 33.6% 40.0% 324 / 811 40.0% 40.0%
In the clinch 111 / 174 63.8% 70.4% 59 / 87 67.8% 70.4%
On the ground 63 / 98 64.3% 69.7% 62 / 79 78.5% 69.7%
BY TARGET
To the head 505 / 1810 27.9% 37.6% 261 / 708 36.9% 37.6%
To the body 243 / 431 56.4% 68.5% 80 / 126 63.5% 68.5%
To the legs 190 / 302 62.9% 80.0% 104 / 143 72.7% 80.0%

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 (Flyweight: 73 fighters · Flyweight: 73 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 Benavidez L/AOpp accFlyweight med vs Perez L/AOpp accFlyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 536 / 1429 37.5% 40.1% 269 / 737 36.5% 40.1%
In the clinch 126 / 182 69.2% 68.8% 22 / 31 71.0% 68.8%
On the ground 60 / 71 84.5% 71.1% 51 / 68 75.0% 71.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 439 / 1292 34.0% 35.2% 240 / 689 34.8% 35.2%
To the body 206 / 289 71.3% 68.2% 64 / 93 68.8% 68.2%
To the legs 77 / 101 76.2% 80.3% 38 / 54 70.4% 80.3%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

2430.8% acc · 1.50/15 · norm 1.30
Takedowns landed
1545.5% acc · 2.13/15 · norm 1.30
5767.9% def · norm 62.5%
Takedowns stopped
2773.0% def · norm 62.5%
40:5517.0% of cage time · norm 17.0%
Control time
28:2226.8% of cage time · norm 17.0%
20:421:17 per 15 · norm 2:44
Time under control
10:571:33 per 15 · norm 2:44
40.25/15 · norm 0.58
Submission attempts
50.71/15 · norm 0.58

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.