Kevin Lee vs. Edson Barboza

UFC 11-8-0 vs. 18-14-0

Tale of the tape

Green = edge on that line
11-8-0
UFC record
18-14-0
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
33
AgeΔ 7 yrs
40
5'9"
HeightΔ 2"
5'11"
77"
ReachΔ 2"
75"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
37.2
Layoff (months)Δ 29.2 mo
8
LLLWL
Last 5 (newest first)
LLLWW

The read

Stats 25%+ off the division median
Edson Barboza carries real power — 0.63 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.25 Lightweight norm.
Kevin Lee hunts takedowns — 3.18 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight norm.
Kevin Lee owns the mat — in control 41% of cage time, vs a 20% Lightweight norm.

Level of competition

Full-career record by tier of opposition

Kevin Lee

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 119
Tier 3 — regional circuit 90

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.06 · 11 tier-1/2 wins · 12 finish wins over 29 documented bouts

In the UFC: 8-8 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.8 wins over .500

Edson Barboza

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 1814
Tier 3 — regional circuit 60

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.06 · 18 tier-1/2 wins · 15 finish wins over 38 documented bouts

In the UFC: 13-12 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.2 wins over .500

Striking

Career totals · norms = own-division medians

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

8433.88/min · norm 3.42
Sig. strikes landed
15864.14/min · norm 3.42
7813.60/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed
17924.68/min · norm 3.37
42.3%norm 43.5%
Striking accuracy
44.7%norm 43.5%
50.3%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
55.7%norm 56.3%
10.07/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
160.63/15 · norm 0.25

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

Kevin Lee

Distance 77.0% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 4.9% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 18.0% (norm 8.0%)

Edson Barboza

Distance 94.7% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 2.7% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 2.6% (norm 8.0%)

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

Kevin Lee

Head 87.5% (norm 78.2%) · Body 11.3% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 1.2% (norm 7.9%)

Edson Barboza

Head 65.6% (norm 78.2%) · Body 20.3% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 14.1% (norm 7.9%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Lee L/AAccLightweight med Barboza L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 500 / 1537 32.5% 37.9% 1447 / 3362 43.0% 37.9%
In the clinch 73 / 98 74.5% 67.3% 79 / 97 81.4% 67.3%
On the ground 270 / 360 75.0% 69.1% 60 / 92 65.2% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 653 / 1746 37.4% 35.0% 694 / 2329 29.8% 35.0%
To the body 166 / 225 73.8% 69.1% 500 / 720 69.4% 69.1%
To the legs 24 / 24 too few to rate 81.9% 392 / 502 78.1% 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 Lee L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Barboza L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 650 / 1405 46.3% 38.9% 1445 / 3555 40.6% 38.9%
In the clinch 64 / 84 76.2% 68.6% 76 / 116 65.5% 68.6%
On the ground 67 / 83 80.7% 68.0% 271 / 373 72.7% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 514 / 1235 41.6% 35.1% 1302 / 3359 38.8% 35.1%
To the body 146 / 202 72.3% 68.1% 244 / 387 63.0% 68.1%
To the legs 121 / 135 89.6% 81.5% 246 / 298 82.6% 81.5%

Grappling

Takedowns, control, submissions vs. division norm
4643.4% acc · 3.18/15 · norm 1.38
Takedowns landed
1150.0% acc · 0.43/15 · norm 1.38
3075.0% def · norm 64.0%
Takedowns stopped
7673.1% def · norm 64.0%
89:3241.2% of cage time · norm 19.5%
Control time
24:396.4% of cage time · norm 19.5%
16:101:07 per 15 · norm 2:46
Time under control
66:532:37 per 15 · norm 2:46
110.76/15 · norm 0.49
Submission attempts
20.08/15 · norm 0.49

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