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Rafael Dos Anjos vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov

UFC 21-16-0 vs. 13-0-0

Tale of the tape

Green = edge on that line
21-16-0
UFC record
13-0-0
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
41
AgeΔ 3 yrs
38
5'8"
HeightΔ 2"
5'10"
70"
ReachΔ 0"
70"
Southpaw
Stance
Orthodox
0.6
Layoff (months)Δ 71.2 mo
71.8
LLLLW
Last 5 (newest first)
WWWWW

The read

Stats 25%+ off the division median
Khabib Nurmagomedov hunts takedowns — 5.32 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.34 Lightweight norm.
Khabib Nurmagomedov owns the mat — in control 55% of cage time, vs a 19% Lightweight norm.
Rafael Dos Anjos hunts takedowns — 1.92 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.34 Lightweight norm.

Level of competition

Full-career record by tier of opposition

Rafael Dos Anjos

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 2115
Tier 3 — regional circuit 102

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.02 · 21 tier-1/2 wins · 15 finish wins over 48 documented bouts

In the UFC: 16-15 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +4.1 wins over .500

Khabib Nurmagomedov

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 130
Tier 3 — regional circuit 130

Tier-weighted record quality: 2.02 · 13 tier-1/2 wins · 18 finish wins over 26 documented bouts

In the UFC: 10-0 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +4.2 wins over .500

Striking

Career totals · norms = own-division medians

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

18483.48/min · norm 3.44
Sig. strikes landed
7054.10/min · norm 3.44
17283.25/min · norm 3.38
Sig. strikes absorbed lower is better
3011.75/min · norm 3.38
47.0%norm 43.65%
Striking accuracy
48.8%norm 43.65%
60.2%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
65.4%norm 56.3%
70.20/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
20.17/15 · norm 0.25

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

Rafael Dos Anjos

Distance 79.3% (norm 83.1%) · Clinch 10.4% (norm 7.3%) · Ground 10.3% (norm 8.0%)

Khabib Nurmagomedov

Distance 61.1% (norm 83.1%) · Clinch 2.8% (norm 7.3%) · Ground 36.1% (norm 8.0%)

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

Rafael Dos Anjos

Head 74.8% (norm 78.0%) · Body 15.2% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 10.0% (norm 8.0%)

Khabib Nurmagomedov

Head 91.3% (norm 78.0%) · Body 6.0% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 2.7% (norm 8.0%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Dos Anjos L/AAccLightweight med Nurmagomedov L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 1249 / 3117 40.1% 38.3% 298 / 883 33.7% 38.3%
In the clinch 321 / 407 78.9% 67.5% 27 / 40 67.5% 67.5%
On the ground 278 / 406 68.5% 68.8% 380 / 521 72.9% 68.8%
BY TARGET
To the head 1083 / 2939 36.8% 35.1% 604 / 1318 45.8% 35.1%
To the body 440 / 599 73.5% 69.1% 65 / 87 74.7% 69.1%
To the legs 325 / 392 82.9% 81.8% 36 / 39 92.3% 81.8%

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: 204 fighters · Lightweight: 204 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 Dos Anjos L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Nurmagomedov L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 1359 / 3813 35.6% 38.8% 260 / 822 31.6% 38.8%
In the clinch 235 / 325 72.3% 68.6% 30 / 35 85.7% 68.6%
On the ground 134 / 203 66.0% 68.0% 11 / 13 too few to rate 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 1129 / 3538 31.9% 35.2% 167 / 661 25.3% 35.2%
To the body 359 / 538 66.7% 68.2% 88 / 155 56.8% 68.2%
To the legs 240 / 265 90.6% 81.5% 46 / 54 85.2% 81.5%

Grappling

Takedowns, control, submissions vs. division norm
6835.6% acc · 1.92/15 · norm 1.34
Takedowns landed
6148.0% acc · 5.32/15 · norm 1.34
9154.8% def · norm 63.7%
Takedowns stopped
1184.6% def · norm 63.7%
136:4525.7% of cage time · norm 18.95%
Control time
94:4155.1% of cage time · norm 18.95%
128:113:37 per 15 · norm 2:50
Time under control lower is better
2:330:13 per 15 · norm 2:50
200.56/15 · norm 0.48
Submission attempts
90.79/15 · norm 0.48

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