BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Reza Madadi vs.
Michael Johnson

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

3-4-0 Reza Madadi · UFC
16-16-0 Michael Johnson · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

3-4-0
UFC record
16-16-0
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
48.1
AgeΔ 7.9 yrs
40.2
5'11"
HeightΔ 1"
5'10"
73"
ReachΔ 0"
73"
Orthodox
Stance
Southpaw
110.3
Layoff (months)Δ 105.3 mo
5
LLWLW
Last 5 (newest first)
LWWWL
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.

Reza Madadi hunts takedowns — 3.17 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight norm.
Michael Johnson carries real power — 0.53 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.25 Lightweight norm.
Michael Johnson rarely shoots — 0.57 takedowns per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight 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.

Reza Madadi

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

In the UFC: 1-3 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +0.9 wins over .500

Michael Johnson

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 1616
Tier 3 — regional circuit 84

Tier-weighted record quality: 0.54 · 16 tier-1/2 wins · 12 finish wins over 44 documented bouts

In the UFC: 11-11 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.3 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

2262.51/min · norm 3.42
Sig. strikes landed
15684.27/min · norm 3.42
2983.31/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed
13863.78/min · norm 3.37
46.5%norm 43.5%
Striking accuracy
39.6%norm 43.5%
67.0%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
58.8%norm 56.3%
00.00/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
130.53/15 · norm 0.25

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

Reza Madadi

Distance 76.5% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 14.8% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 8.6% (norm 8.0%)

Michael Johnson

Distance 93.5% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 4.0% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 2.5% (norm 8.0%)

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

Reza Madadi

Head 89.1% (norm 78.2%) · Body 8.6% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 2.3% (norm 7.9%)

Michael Johnson

Head 70.1% (norm 78.2%) · Body 21.9% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 8.0% (norm 7.9%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Madadi L/AAccLightweight med Johnson L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 143 / 372 38.4% 37.9% 1405 / 3703 37.9% 37.9%
In the clinch 48 / 72 66.7% 67.3% 101 / 157 64.3% 67.3%
On the ground 35 / 42 83.3% 69.1% 62 / 101 61.4% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 186 / 433 43.0% 35.0% 829 / 2776 29.9% 35.0%
To the body 33 / 42 78.6% 69.1% 496 / 869 57.1% 69.1%
To the legs 7 / 11 too few to rate 81.9% 243 / 316 76.9% 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 Madadi L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Johnson L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 236 / 792 29.8% 38.9% 1025 / 2854 35.9% 38.9%
In the clinch 39 / 67 58.2% 68.6% 96 / 140 68.6% 68.6%
On the ground 23 / 43 53.5% 68.0% 265 / 373 71.0% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 201 / 758 26.5% 35.1% 923 / 2702 34.2% 35.1%
To the body 73 / 113 64.6% 68.1% 231 / 379 60.9% 68.1%
To the legs 24 / 31 77.4% 81.5% 232 / 286 81.1% 81.5%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

1933.9% acc · 3.17/15 · norm 1.38
Takedowns landed
1438.9% acc · 0.57/15 · norm 1.38
1789.5% def · norm 64.0%
Takedowns stopped
8681.1% def · norm 64.0%
22:4025.2% of cage time · norm 19.5%
Control time
28:497.9% of cage time · norm 19.5%
16:042:40 per 15 · norm 2:46
Time under control
61:252:30 per 15 · norm 2:46
30.50/15 · norm 0.49
Submission attempts
10.04/15 · norm 0.49

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.