BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Ricco Rodriguez vs.
Jeff Monson

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

5-2-0 Ricco Rodriguez · UFC
4-3-0 Jeff Monson · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

5-2-0
UFC record
4-3-0
Heavyweight
Division (benchmark)
Heavyweight
49
AgeΔ 6.5 yrs
55.5
6'4"
HeightΔ 7"
5'9"
Reach
74"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
272.5
Layoff (months)Δ 35.9 mo
236.6
LLWWW
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.

Ricco Rodriguez is a submission threat — 1.08 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.16 Heavyweight norm.
Jeff Monson is a submission threat — 0.53 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.16 Heavyweight norm.
Ricco Rodriguez hunts takedowns — 3.07 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.

Ricco Rodriguez

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

In the UFC: 3-2 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.7 wins over .500

Jeff Monson

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

In the UFC: 2-3 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.4 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

1782.14/min · norm 3.36
Sig. strikes landed
1161.36/min · norm 3.36
1091.31/min · norm 3.19
Sig. strikes absorbed
1912.24/min · norm 3.19
56.7%norm 47.8%
Striking accuracy
38.8%norm 47.8%
57.9%norm 52.5%
Striking defense
58.7%norm 52.5%
00.00/15 · norm 0.28
Knockdowns
10.18/15 · norm 0.28

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

Ricco Rodriguez

Distance 36.0% (norm 79.5%) · Clinch 10.8% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 53.2% (norm 9.3%)

Jeff Monson

Distance 53.2% (norm 79.5%) · Clinch 15.7% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 31.1% (norm 9.3%)

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

Ricco Rodriguez

Head 85.4% (norm 79.2%) · Body 10.8% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 3.8% (norm 7.6%)

Jeff Monson

Head 82.6% (norm 79.2%) · Body 13.0% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 4.3% (norm 7.6%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Rodriguez L/AAccHeavyweight med Monson L/AAccHeavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 43 / 113 38.1% 40.1% 29 / 159 18.2% 40.1%
In the clinch 26 / 34 76.5% 70.6% 32 / 47 68.1% 70.6%
On the ground 109 / 167 65.3% 70.2% 55 / 93 59.1% 70.2%
BY TARGET
To the head 142 / 268 53.0% 38.9% 70 / 247 28.3% 38.9%
To the body 25 / 34 73.5% 76.8% 34 / 39 87.2% 76.8%
To the legs 11 / 12 too few to rate 87.8% 12 / 13 too few to rate 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 Rodriguez L/AOpp accHeavyweight med vs Monson L/AOpp accHeavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 38 / 135 28.1% 40.7% 105 / 351 29.9% 40.7%
In the clinch 17 / 31 54.8% 70.6% 35 / 49 71.4% 70.6%
On the ground 54 / 93 58.1% 72.0% 51 / 62 82.3% 72.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 67 / 209 32.1% 38.8% 96 / 358 26.8% 38.8%
To the body 13 / 15 too few to rate 75.1% 31 / 32 96.9% 75.1%
To the legs 29 / 35 82.9% 84.4% 64 / 72 88.9% 84.4%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

1740.5% acc · 3.07/15 · norm 0.95
Takedowns landed
817.0% acc · 1.41/15 · norm 0.95
538.5% def · norm 64.3%
Takedowns stopped
770.0% def · norm 64.3%
39:3547.7% of cage time · norm 17.2%
Control time
27:2232.1% of cage time · norm 17.2%
21:293:52 per 15 · norm 2:28
Time under control
18:133:12 per 15 · norm 2:28
61.08/15 · norm 0.16
Submission attempts
30.53/15 · norm 0.16

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.