Shamil Gaziev vs. Waldo Cortes Acosta
Tale of the tape
The read
Level of competition
Shamil Gaziev
| Competition tier | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin | 4 | 3 |
| Tier 3 — regional circuit | 10 | 0 |
Tier-weighted record quality: 1.26 · 4 tier-1/2 wins · 12 finish wins over 17 documented bouts
In the UFC: 2-3 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.3 wins over .500
Waldo Cortes Acosta
| Competition tier | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin | 12 | 3 |
| Tier 2 — LFA / Cage Warriors (feeder belts) | 2 | 0 |
| Tier 3 — regional circuit | 3 | 0 |
Tier-weighted record quality: 1.86 · 14 tier-1/2 wins · 10 finish wins over 20 documented bouts
In the UFC: 7-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.8 wins over .500
Striking
Significant strikes — landed & absorbed
Where the fight happens (share of sig. strike attempts)
Shamil Gaziev
Distance 82.4% (norm 79.2%) · Clinch 11.8% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 5.8% (norm 9.3%)
Waldo Cortes Acosta
Distance 90.9% (norm 79.2%) · Clinch 2.5% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 6.6% (norm 9.3%)
What they throw (share of sig. strike attempts by target)
Shamil Gaziev
Head 84.3% (norm 79.2%) · Body 14.8% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 0.8% (norm 7.6%)
Waldo Cortes Acosta
Head 81.3% (norm 79.2%) · Body 9.9% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 8.8% (norm 7.6%)
Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone
Green ≥ division median, red below. UFCStats tracks position and target as separate splits.
| Zone | Gaziev L/A | Acc | Heavyweight med | Acosta L/A | Acc | Heavyweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 119 / 300 | 39.7% | 40.1% | 697 / 1505 | 46.3% | 40.1% |
| In the clinch | 32 / 43 | 74.4% | 70.4% | 24 / 41 | 58.5% | 70.4% |
| On the ground | 14 / 21 | too few to rate | 70.2% | 66 / 110 | 60.0% | 70.2% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 118 / 307 | 38.4% | 39.0% | 558 / 1347 | 41.4% | 39.0% |
| To the body | 44 / 54 | 81.5% | 77.0% | 113 / 164 | 68.9% | 77.0% |
| To the legs | 3 / 3 | too few to rate | 87.8% | 116 / 145 | 80.0% | 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 Gaziev L/A | Opp acc | Heavyweight med | vs Acosta L/A | Opp acc | Heavyweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 267 / 485 | 55.1% | 40.7% | 539 / 1212 | 44.5% | 40.7% |
| In the clinch | 15 / 31 | 48.4% | 70.6% | 12 / 26 | 46.2% | 70.6% |
| On the ground | 1 / 2 | too few to rate | 72.2% | 2 / 3 | too few to rate | 72.2% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 181 / 400 | 45.2% | 39.3% | 217 / 845 | 25.7% | 39.3% |
| To the body | 57 / 72 | 79.2% | 75.1% | 112 / 155 | 72.3% | 75.1% |
| To the legs | 45 / 46 | 97.8% | 84.4% | 224 / 241 | 92.9% | 84.4% |
Grappling
Bars compare the two men's rates (per-minute / per-15 figures), not raw totals — Acosta has more cage time on record.