BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Randy Couture vs.
Gabriel Gonzaga

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

16-8-0 Randy Couture · UFC
12-10-0 Gabriel Gonzaga · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

16-8-0
UFC record
12-10-0
Heavyweight
Division (benchmark)
Heavyweight
63.1
AgeΔ 15.9 yrs
47.2
6'1"
HeightΔ 1"
6'2"
75"
ReachΔ 1"
76"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
183.2
Layoff (months)Δ 59.3 mo
123.9
LWWWL
Last 5 (newest first)
LWLLL
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.

Gabriel Gonzaga is a submission threat — 1.20 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.16 Heavyweight norm.
Randy Couture is a submission threat — 0.60 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.16 Heavyweight norm.
Randy Couture hunts takedowns — 2.85 per 15 minutes, vs a 0.95 Heavyweight 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.

Randy Couture

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

In the UFC: 13-7 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.7 wins over .500

Gabriel Gonzaga

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

In the UFC: 4-8 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

7782.84/min · norm 3.36
Sig. strikes landed
2932.13/min · norm 3.36
3961.45/min · norm 3.19
Sig. strikes absorbed
3712.70/min · norm 3.19
59.2%norm 47.8%
Striking accuracy
45.1%norm 47.8%
59.1%norm 52.5%
Striking defense
59.1%norm 52.5%
10.05/15 · norm 0.28
Knockdowns
70.76/15 · norm 0.28

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

Randy Couture

Distance 39.7% (norm 79.5%) · Clinch 23.2% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 37.1% (norm 9.3%)

Gabriel Gonzaga

Distance 67.7% (norm 79.5%) · Clinch 9.8% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 22.5% (norm 9.3%)

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

Randy Couture

Head 84.6% (norm 79.2%) · Body 7.7% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 7.7% (norm 7.6%)

Gabriel Gonzaga

Head 78.0% (norm 79.2%) · Body 9.2% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 12.8% (norm 7.6%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Couture L/AAccHeavyweight med Gonzaga L/AAccHeavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 208 / 522 39.8% 40.1% 156 / 440 35.5% 40.1%
In the clinch 235 / 305 77.0% 70.6% 43 / 64 67.2% 70.6%
On the ground 335 / 488 68.6% 70.2% 94 / 146 64.4% 70.2%
BY TARGET
To the head 598 / 1113 53.7% 38.9% 186 / 507 36.7% 38.9%
To the body 87 / 101 86.1% 76.8% 42 / 60 70.0% 76.8%
To the legs 93 / 101 92.1% 87.8% 65 / 83 78.3% 87.8%

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 (Heavyweight: 93 fighters · Heavyweight: 93 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 Couture L/AOpp accHeavyweight med vs Gonzaga L/AOpp accHeavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 186 / 652 28.5% 40.7% 189 / 643 29.4% 40.7%
In the clinch 105 / 158 66.5% 70.6% 92 / 130 70.8% 70.6%
On the ground 105 / 158 66.5% 72.0% 90 / 133 67.7% 72.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 269 / 819 32.8% 38.8% 310 / 820 37.8% 38.8%
To the body 71 / 83 85.5% 75.1% 33 / 50 66.0% 75.1%
To the legs 56 / 66 84.8% 84.4% 28 / 36 77.8% 84.4%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

5250.0% acc · 2.85/15 · norm 0.95
Takedowns landed
2438.1% acc · 2.62/15 · norm 0.95
1959.4% def · norm 64.3%
Takedowns stopped
1275.0% def · norm 64.3%
126:4251.0% of cage time · norm 17.2%
Control time
37:1027.0% of cage time · norm 17.2%
43:412:23 per 15 · norm 2:28
Time under control
16:541:50 per 15 · norm 2:28
110.60/15 · norm 0.16
Submission attempts
111.20/15 · norm 0.16

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.