Edson Barboza vs. Gilbert Melendez
Tale of the tape
The read
Level of competition
Edson Barboza
| Competition tier | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin | 18 | 14 |
| Tier 3 — regional circuit | 6 | 0 |
Tier-weighted record quality: 1.06 · 18 tier-1/2 wins · 15 finish wins over 38 documented bouts
In the UFC: 13-12 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.2 wins over .500
Gilbert Melendez
| Competition tier | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin | 1 | 6 |
| Tier 3 — regional circuit | 21 | 2 |
Tier-weighted record quality: 0.73 · 1 tier-1/2 wins · 12 finish wins over 30 documented bouts
In the UFC: 1-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.9 wins over .500
Striking
Significant strikes — landed & absorbed
Where the fight happens (share of sig. strike attempts)
Edson Barboza
Distance 94.7% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 2.7% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 2.6% (norm 8.0%)
Gilbert Melendez
Distance 93.5% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 5.3% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 1.2% (norm 8.0%)
What they throw (share of sig. strike attempts by target)
Edson Barboza
Head 65.6% (norm 78.2%) · Body 20.3% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 14.1% (norm 7.9%)
Gilbert Melendez
Head 89.7% (norm 78.2%) · Body 7.3% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 3.0% (norm 7.9%)
Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone
Green ≥ division median, red below. UFCStats tracks position and target as separate splits.
| Zone | Barboza L/A | Acc | Lightweight med | Melendez L/A | Acc | Lightweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 1447 / 3362 | 43.0% | 37.9% | 257 / 953 | 27.0% | 37.9% |
| In the clinch | 79 / 97 | 81.4% | 67.3% | 30 / 54 | 55.6% | 67.3% |
| On the ground | 60 / 92 | 65.2% | 69.1% | 7 / 12 | too few to rate | 69.1% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 694 / 2329 | 29.8% | 35.0% | 229 / 914 | 25.1% | 35.0% |
| To the body | 500 / 720 | 69.4% | 69.1% | 45 / 74 | 60.8% | 69.1% |
| To the legs | 392 / 502 | 78.1% | 81.9% | 20 / 31 | 64.5% | 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 Barboza L/A | Opp acc | Lightweight med | vs Melendez L/A | Opp acc | Lightweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 1445 / 3555 | 40.6% | 38.9% | 388 / 983 | 39.5% | 38.9% |
| In the clinch | 76 / 116 | 65.5% | 68.6% | 21 / 33 | 63.6% | 68.6% |
| On the ground | 271 / 373 | 72.7% | 68.0% | 16 / 24 | too few to rate | 68.0% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 1302 / 3359 | 38.8% | 35.1% | 228 / 779 | 29.3% | 35.1% |
| To the body | 244 / 387 | 63.0% | 68.1% | 88 / 131 | 67.2% | 68.1% |
| To the legs | 246 / 298 | 82.6% | 81.5% | 109 / 130 | 83.8% | 81.5% |
Grappling
Bars compare the two men's rates (per-minute / per-15 figures), not raw totals — Barboza has more cage time on record.