BOUTSCOUT
Matchup deep-dive

Willie Gates vs.
John Moraga

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

1-3-0 Willie Gates · UFC
8-6-0 John Moraga · UFC
Tale of the tape

The men, measured.

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

1-3-0
UFC record
8-6-0
Flyweight
Division (benchmark)
Flyweight
39
AgeΔ 3 yrs
42
5'8"
HeightΔ 2"
5'6"
72"
ReachΔ 6"
66"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
122.9
Layoff (months)Δ 27.5 mo
95.4
LLWL
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.

Willie Gates carries real power — 0.81 knockdowns per 15 minutes, vs a 0.18 Flyweight norm.
Willie Gates rarely shoots — 0.00 takedowns per 15 minutes, vs a 1.30 Flyweight norm.
John Moraga is a submission threat — 1.07 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.58 Flyweight 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.

Willie Gates

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

In the UFC: 0-2 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +0.0 wins over .500

John Moraga

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

In the UFC: 5-6 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.0 wins over .500

Striking

The stand-up battle.

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

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

671.80/min · norm 3.49
Sig. strikes landed
4332.57/min · norm 3.49
1594.28/min · norm 3.24
Sig. strikes absorbed
4292.55/min · norm 3.24
39.0%norm 44.6%
Striking accuracy
43.5%norm 44.6%
38.8%norm 56.4%
Striking defense
56.4%norm 56.4%
20.81/15 · norm 0.18
Knockdowns
20.18/15 · norm 0.18

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

Willie Gates

Distance 79.1% (norm 85.1%) · Clinch 10.5% (norm 6.0%) · Ground 10.5% (norm 7.3%)

John Moraga

Distance 77.3% (norm 85.1%) · Clinch 11.4% (norm 6.0%) · Ground 11.4% (norm 7.3%)

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

Willie Gates

Head 73.3% (norm 75.9%) · Body 17.4% (norm 13.3%) · Legs 9.3% (norm 9.3%)

John Moraga

Head 72.3% (norm 75.9%) · Body 17.1% (norm 13.3%) · Legs 10.7% (norm 9.3%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Gates L/AAccFlyweight med Moraga L/AAccFlyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 42 / 136 30.9% 40.0% 254 / 769 33.0% 40.0%
In the clinch 9 / 18 too few to rate 70.4% 82 / 113 72.6% 70.4%
On the ground 16 / 18 too few to rate 69.7% 97 / 113 85.8% 69.7%
BY TARGET
To the head 36 / 126 28.6% 37.6% 242 / 719 33.7% 37.6%
To the body 23 / 30 76.7% 68.5% 109 / 170 64.1% 68.5%
To the legs 8 / 16 too few to rate 80.0% 82 / 106 77.4% 80.0%

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 (Flyweight: 73 fighters · Flyweight: 73 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 Gates L/AOpp accFlyweight med vs Moraga L/AOpp accFlyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 31 / 109 28.4% 40.1% 278 / 778 35.7% 40.1%
In the clinch 26 / 34 76.5% 68.8% 52 / 81 64.2% 68.8%
On the ground 102 / 117 87.2% 71.1% 99 / 126 78.6% 71.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 108 / 193 56.0% 35.2% 220 / 707 31.1% 35.2%
To the body 31 / 39 79.5% 68.2% 99 / 147 67.3% 68.2%
To the legs 20 / 28 71.4% 80.3% 110 / 131 84.0% 80.3%
Grappling

The ground war.

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

0— acc · 0.00/15 · norm 1.30
Takedowns landed
723.3% acc · 0.62/15 · norm 1.30
1967.9% def · norm 62.5%
Takedowns stopped
2944.6% def · norm 62.5%
6:4017.9% of cage time · norm 17.0%
Control time
24:2614.5% of cage time · norm 17.0%
18:307:27 per 15 · norm 2:44
Time under control
53:354:46 per 15 · norm 2:44
10.40/15 · norm 0.58
Submission attempts
121.07/15 · norm 0.58

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

Next move

Let the engine settle it.