BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Tony Ferguson vs.
Michael Chandler

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

15-9-0 Tony Ferguson · UFC
2-6-0 Michael Chandler · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

15-9-0
UFC record
2-6-0
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
42.5
AgeΔ 2.2 yrs
40.3
5'11"
HeightΔ 3"
5'8"
76"
ReachΔ 5"
71"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
24.1
Layoff (months)Δ 22.4 mo
1.7
LLLLL
Last 5 (newest first)
LLLLW
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.

Tony Ferguson is a submission threat — 0.88 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.49 Lightweight norm.
Tony Ferguson rarely shoots — 0.39 takedowns per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight norm.
Opponents land 54% of their head shots on Michael Chandler, vs a 35% Lightweight norm — a hole in the guard.
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.

Tony Ferguson

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 159
Tier 3 — regional circuit 102

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.17 · 15 tier-1/2 wins · 20 finish wins over 36 documented bouts

In the UFC: 10-7 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.8 wins over .500

Michael Chandler

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 2011
Tier 3 — regional circuit 30

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.39 · 20 tier-1/2 wins · 18 finish wins over 34 documented bouts

In the UFC: 2-6 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +7.9 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

13324.91/min · norm 3.42
Sig. strikes landed
3183.85/min · norm 3.42
11864.37/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed
3934.75/min · norm 3.37
45.9%norm 43.5%
Striking accuracy
50.5%norm 43.5%
55.4%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
40.9%norm 56.3%
30.17/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
20.36/15 · norm 0.25

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

Tony Ferguson

Distance 94.3% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 1.7% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 4.1% (norm 8.0%)

Michael Chandler

Distance 82.1% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 1.0% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 17.0% (norm 8.0%)

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

Tony Ferguson

Head 75.1% (norm 78.2%) · Body 13.5% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 11.4% (norm 7.9%)

Michael Chandler

Head 77.3% (norm 78.2%) · Body 16.5% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 6.2% (norm 7.9%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Ferguson L/AAccLightweight med Chandler L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 1210 / 2738 44.2% 37.9% 235 / 517 45.5% 37.9%
In the clinch 31 / 49 63.3% 67.3% 6 / 6 too few to rate 67.3%
On the ground 91 / 118 77.1% 69.1% 77 / 107 72.0% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 800 / 2182 36.7% 35.0% 212 / 487 43.5% 35.0%
To the body 259 / 393 65.9% 69.1% 73 / 104 70.2% 69.1%
To the legs 273 / 330 82.7% 81.9% 33 / 39 84.6% 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 Ferguson L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Chandler L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 1028 / 2394 42.9% 38.9% 299 / 542 55.2% 38.9%
In the clinch 15 / 48 31.2% 68.6% 18 / 22 too few to rate 68.6%
On the ground 143 / 216 66.2% 68.0% 76 / 101 75.2% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 790 / 2103 37.6% 35.1% 283 / 521 54.3% 35.1%
To the body 225 / 356 63.2% 68.1% 35 / 57 61.4% 68.1%
To the legs 171 / 199 85.9% 81.5% 75 / 87 86.2% 81.5%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

735.0% acc · 0.39/15 · norm 1.38
Takedowns landed
936.0% acc · 1.63/15 · norm 1.38
3966.1% def · norm 64.0%
Takedowns stopped
956.3% def · norm 64.0%
8:002.9% of cage time · norm 19.5%
Control time
15:3218.8% of cage time · norm 19.5%
63:463:31 per 15 · norm 2:46
Time under control
23:524:19 per 15 · norm 2:46
160.88/15 · norm 0.49
Submission attempts
10.18/15 · norm 0.49

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.