BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Paulo Thiago vs.
Josh Koscheck

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

5-8-0 Paulo Thiago · UFC
15-10-0 Josh Koscheck · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

5-8-0
UFC record
15-10-0
Welterweight
Division (benchmark)
Welterweight
45.5
AgeΔ 3.2 yrs
48.7
5'11"
HeightΔ 1"
5'10"
74"
ReachΔ 1"
73"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
142.7
Layoff (months)Δ 6.2 mo
136.5
LLLWL
Last 5 (newest first)
LLLLL
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.

Paulo Thiago is a submission threat — 1.21 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.45 Welterweight norm.
Josh Koscheck owns the mat — in control 39% of cage time, vs a 18% Welterweight norm.
Josh Koscheck hunts takedowns — 2.51 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.27 Welterweight 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.

Paulo Thiago

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

In the UFC: 2-5 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.8 wins over .500

Josh Koscheck

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

In the UFC: 9-7 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.4 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

2541.71/min · norm 3.17
Sig. strikes landed
4281.79/min · norm 3.17
2951.99/min · norm 3.06
Sig. strikes absorbed
5272.21/min · norm 3.06
39.1%norm 44.9%
Striking accuracy
36.2%norm 44.9%
63.5%norm 55.25%
Striking defense
63.2%norm 55.25%
40.40/15 · norm 0.38
Knockdowns
40.25/15 · norm 0.38

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

Paulo Thiago

Distance 76.3% (norm 81.2%) · Clinch 14.6% (norm 9.4%) · Ground 9.1% (norm 8.1%)

Josh Koscheck

Distance 74.4% (norm 81.2%) · Clinch 5.8% (norm 9.4%) · Ground 19.8% (norm 8.1%)

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

Paulo Thiago

Head 81.7% (norm 78.2%) · Body 13.1% (norm 12.4%) · Legs 5.2% (norm 8.4%)

Josh Koscheck

Head 88.0% (norm 78.2%) · Body 9.3% (norm 12.4%) · Legs 2.7% (norm 8.4%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Thiago L/AAccWelterweight med Koscheck L/AAccWelterweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 151 / 495 30.5% 38.6% 204 / 880 23.2% 38.6%
In the clinch 73 / 95 76.8% 67.8% 45 / 69 65.2% 67.8%
On the ground 30 / 59 50.8% 67.2% 179 / 234 76.5% 67.2%
BY TARGET
To the head 156 / 530 29.4% 37.2% 322 / 1041 30.9% 37.2%
To the body 65 / 85 76.5% 70.7% 80 / 110 72.7% 70.7%
To the legs 33 / 34 97.1% 82.9% 26 / 32 81.2% 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 Thiago L/AOpp accWelterweight med vs Koscheck L/AOpp accWelterweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 168 / 611 27.5% 39.0% 413 / 1275 32.4% 39.0%
In the clinch 29 / 52 55.8% 68.9% 74 / 97 76.3% 68.9%
On the ground 98 / 146 67.1% 68.0% 40 / 59 67.8% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 199 / 642 31.0% 35.6% 319 / 1139 28.0% 35.6%
To the body 48 / 86 55.8% 69.6% 45 / 83 54.2% 69.6%
To the legs 48 / 81 59.3% 82.1% 163 / 209 78.0% 82.1%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

1431.8% acc · 1.42/15 · norm 1.27
Takedowns landed
4048.2% acc · 2.51/15 · norm 1.27
3063.8% def · norm 63.9%
Takedowns stopped
1864.3% def · norm 63.9%
22:3815.3% of cage time · norm 18.5%
Control time
92:1238.6% of cage time · norm 18.5%
62:026:16 per 15 · norm 3:15
Time under control
24:221:31 per 15 · norm 3:15
121.21/15 · norm 0.45
Submission attempts
70.44/15 · norm 0.45

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.