BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Michael Bisping vs.
Jorge Rivera

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

20-9-0 Michael Bisping · UFC
8-7-0 Jorge Rivera · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

20-9-0
UFC record
8-7-0
Middleweight
Division (benchmark)
Middleweight
47
AgeΔ 7 yrs
54
6'1"
HeightΔ 0"
6'1"
75"
ReachΔ 2"
73"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
104.3
Layoff (months)Δ 70.2 mo
174.5
LLWWW
Last 5 (newest first)
WLLWW
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.

Jorge Rivera carries real power — 1.04 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.32 Middleweight norm.
Jorge Rivera owns the mat — in control 34% of cage time, vs a 20% Middleweight norm.
Michael Bisping defends head shots well — opponents land just 26%, vs a 38% Middleweight 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.

Michael Bisping

Full career not yet synced for Michael Bisping — tier grading appears once their record documentation lands (refreshes weekly).

In the UFC: 14-8 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.7 wins over .500

Jorge Rivera

Full career not yet synced for Jorge Rivera — tier grading appears once their record documentation lands (refreshes weekly).

In the UFC: 4-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.1 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

15674.29/min · norm 3.25
Sig. strikes landed
3783.27/min · norm 3.25
9992.73/min · norm 3.20
Sig. strikes absorbed
2802.42/min · norm 3.20
37.7%norm 47.4%
Striking accuracy
49.7%norm 47.4%
65.4%norm 53.8%
Striking defense
57.1%norm 53.8%
80.33/15 · norm 0.32
Knockdowns
81.04/15 · norm 0.32

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

Michael Bisping

Distance 88.1% (norm 79.4%) · Clinch 5.8% (norm 9.1%) · Ground 6.1% (norm 10.3%)

Jorge Rivera

Distance 45.1% (norm 79.4%) · Clinch 33.2% (norm 9.1%) · Ground 21.7% (norm 10.3%)

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

Michael Bisping

Head 86.5% (norm 78.0%) · Body 6.8% (norm 13.4%) · Legs 6.7% (norm 8.4%)

Jorge Rivera

Head 78.1% (norm 78.0%) · Body 13.7% (norm 13.4%) · Legs 8.3% (norm 8.4%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Bisping L/AAccMiddleweight med Rivera L/AAccMiddleweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 1271 / 3664 34.7% 40.5% 114 / 343 33.2% 40.5%
In the clinch 152 / 241 63.1% 70.3% 165 / 253 65.2% 70.3%
On the ground 144 / 255 56.5% 69.1% 99 / 165 60.0% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 1132 / 3600 31.4% 38.9% 243 / 594 40.9% 38.9%
To the body 195 / 283 68.9% 71.7% 86 / 104 82.7% 71.7%
To the legs 240 / 277 86.6% 83.3% 49 / 63 77.8% 83.3%

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 (Middleweight: 174 fighters · Middleweight: 174 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 Bisping L/AOpp accMiddleweight med vs Rivera L/AOpp accMiddleweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 820 / 2543 32.2% 39.5% 96 / 329 29.2% 39.5%
In the clinch 84 / 168 50.0% 70.9% 132 / 238 55.5% 70.9%
On the ground 95 / 173 54.9% 69.0% 52 / 86 60.5% 69.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 587 / 2294 25.6% 37.9% 175 / 519 33.7% 37.9%
To the body 185 / 312 59.3% 71.3% 60 / 82 73.2% 71.3%
To the legs 227 / 278 81.7% 82.1% 45 / 52 86.5% 82.1%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

2643.3% acc · 1.07/15 · norm 1.42
Takedowns landed
750.0% acc · 0.91/15 · norm 1.42
6263.3% def · norm 63.1%
Takedowns stopped
2764.3% def · norm 63.1%
33:069.1% of cage time · norm 19.75%
Control time
38:5233.6% of cage time · norm 19.75%
54:532:15 per 15 · norm 3:00
Time under control
35:214:35 per 15 · norm 3:00
50.21/15 · norm 0.47
Submission attempts
10.13/15 · norm 0.47

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.