BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Vitor Belfort vs.
Michael Bisping

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

15-10-0 (1 NC) Vitor Belfort · UFC
20-9-0 Michael Bisping · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

15-10-0 (1 NC)
UFC record
20-9-0
Middleweight
Division (benchmark)
Middleweight
49.3
AgeΔ 1.9 yrs
47.4
6'0"
HeightΔ 1"
6'1"
74"
ReachΔ 1"
75"
Southpaw
Stance
Orthodox
98.8
Layoff (months)Δ 5.5 mo
104.3
LWNCLL
Last 5 (newest first)
LLWWW
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.

Vitor Belfort carries real power — 1.14 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.32 Middleweight norm.
Vitor Belfort is a submission threat — 0.83 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.47 Middleweight norm.
Michael Bisping defends head shots well — opponents land just 26%, vs a 38% Middleweight 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.

Vitor Belfort

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

In the UFC: 10-10 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +4.1 wins over .500

Michael Bisping

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

In the UFC: 14-8 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.7 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

2871.99/min · norm 3.25
Sig. strikes landed
15674.29/min · norm 3.25
5013.47/min · norm 3.20
Sig. strikes absorbed
9992.73/min · norm 3.20
47.3%norm 47.4%
Striking accuracy
37.7%norm 47.4%
46.4%norm 53.8%
Striking defense
65.4%norm 53.8%
111.14/15 · norm 0.32
Knockdowns
80.33/15 · norm 0.32

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

Vitor Belfort

Distance 59.1% (norm 79.4%) · Clinch 19.3% (norm 9.1%) · Ground 21.6% (norm 10.3%)

Michael Bisping

Distance 88.1% (norm 79.4%) · Clinch 5.8% (norm 9.1%) · Ground 6.1% (norm 10.3%)

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

Vitor Belfort

Head 88.0% (norm 78.0%) · Body 7.9% (norm 13.4%) · Legs 4.1% (norm 8.4%)

Michael Bisping

Head 86.5% (norm 78.0%) · Body 6.8% (norm 13.4%) · Legs 6.7% (norm 8.4%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Belfort L/AAccMiddleweight med Bisping L/AAccMiddleweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 127 / 359 35.4% 40.5% 1271 / 3664 34.7% 40.5%
In the clinch 68 / 117 58.1% 70.3% 152 / 241 63.1% 70.3%
On the ground 92 / 131 70.2% 69.1% 144 / 255 56.5% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 231 / 534 43.3% 38.9% 1132 / 3600 31.4% 38.9%
To the body 34 / 48 70.8% 71.7% 195 / 283 68.9% 71.7%
To the legs 22 / 25 88.0% 83.3% 240 / 277 86.6% 83.3%

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 (Middleweight: 174 fighters · Middleweight: 174 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 Belfort L/AOpp accMiddleweight med vs Bisping L/AOpp accMiddleweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 195 / 499 39.1% 39.5% 820 / 2543 32.2% 39.5%
In the clinch 88 / 132 66.7% 70.9% 84 / 168 50.0% 70.9%
On the ground 218 / 304 71.7% 69.0% 95 / 173 54.9% 69.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 335 / 719 46.6% 37.9% 587 / 2294 25.6% 37.9%
To the body 52 / 80 65.0% 71.3% 185 / 312 59.3% 71.3%
To the legs 114 / 136 83.8% 82.1% 227 / 278 81.7% 82.1%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

675.0% acc · 0.62/15 · norm 1.42
Takedowns landed
2643.3% acc · 1.07/15 · norm 1.42
2665.0% def · norm 63.1%
Takedowns stopped
6263.3% def · norm 63.1%
7:576.2% of cage time · norm 19.75%
Control time
33:069.1% of cage time · norm 19.75%
46:244:49 per 15 · norm 3:00
Time under control
54:532:15 per 15 · norm 3:00
80.83/15 · norm 0.47
Submission attempts
50.21/15 · norm 0.47

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.