Nikita Krylov vs. Paul Craig

UFC 12-10-0 vs. 9-10-1 (1 NC)

Tale of the tape

Green = edge on that line
12-10-0
UFC record
9-10-1 (1 NC)
Light Heavyweight
Division (benchmark)
Light Heavyweight
34
AgeΔ 4 yrs
38
6'3"
HeightΔ 0"
6'3"
77"
ReachΔ 1"
76"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
0.9
Layoff (months)Δ 10.1 mo
11
LWLLW
Last 5 (newest first)
LNCLLL

The read

Stats 25%+ off the division median
Paul Craig is a submission threat — 1.34 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.27 Light Heavyweight norm.
Nikita Krylov is a submission threat — 1.14 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.27 Light Heavyweight norm.
Nikita Krylov hunts takedowns — 2.19 per 15 minutes, vs a 0.87 Light Heavyweight norm.

Level of competition

Full-career record by tier of opposition

Nikita Krylov

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 1210
Tier 3 — regional circuit 192

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.05 · 12 tier-1/2 wins · 29 finish wins over 43 documented bouts

In the UFC: 9-9 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.6 wins over .500

Paul Craig

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 910
Tier 3 — regional circuit 80

Tier-weighted record quality: 0.89 · 9 tier-1/2 wins · 17 finish wins over 29 documented bouts

In the UFC: 5-7 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.5 wins over .500

Striking

Career totals · norms = own-division medians

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

6894.38/min · norm 3.41
Sig. strikes landed
4212.50/min · norm 3.41
4332.75/min · norm 3.35
Sig. strikes absorbed
5113.04/min · norm 3.35
54.2%norm 48.3%
Striking accuracy
45.4%norm 48.3%
48.1%norm 52.9%
Striking defense
43.4%norm 52.9%
60.57/15 · norm 0.40
Knockdowns
10.09/15 · norm 0.40

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

Nikita Krylov

Distance 72.1% (norm 80.5%) · Clinch 15.7% (norm 8.6%) · Ground 12.3% (norm 10.4%)

Paul Craig

Distance 78.4% (norm 80.5%) · Clinch 8.6% (norm 8.6%) · Ground 12.9% (norm 10.4%)

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

Nikita Krylov

Head 69.5% (norm 79.2%) · Body 20.1% (norm 11.7%) · Legs 10.5% (norm 9.7%)

Paul Craig

Head 68.3% (norm 79.2%) · Body 21.8% (norm 11.7%) · Legs 9.9% (norm 9.7%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Krylov L/AAccLight Heavyweight med Craig L/AAccLight Heavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 408 / 916 44.5% 41.4% 283 / 728 38.9% 41.4%
In the clinch 156 / 199 78.4% 70.9% 57 / 80 71.2% 70.9%
On the ground 125 / 156 80.1% 72.3% 81 / 120 67.5% 72.3%
BY TARGET
To the head 406 / 883 46.0% 38.9% 211 / 634 33.3% 38.9%
To the body 171 / 255 67.1% 71.9% 133 / 202 65.8% 71.9%
To the legs 112 / 133 84.2% 81.8% 77 / 92 83.7% 81.8%

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 (Light Heavyweight: 93 fighters · Light 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 Krylov L/AOpp accLight Heavyweight med vs Craig L/AOpp accLight Heavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 274 / 608 45.1% 40.4% 281 / 584 48.1% 40.4%
In the clinch 68 / 98 69.4% 68.7% 49 / 60 81.7% 68.7%
On the ground 91 / 129 70.5% 70.4% 181 / 259 69.9% 70.4%
BY TARGET
To the head 374 / 761 49.1% 37.5% 353 / 713 49.5% 37.5%
To the body 37 / 50 74.0% 72.3% 78 / 97 80.4% 72.3%
To the legs 22 / 24 too few to rate 83.0% 80 / 93 86.0% 83.0%

Grappling

Takedowns, control, submissions vs. division norm
2338.3% acc · 2.19/15 · norm 0.87
Takedowns landed
1618.8% acc · 1.43/15 · norm 0.87
2553.2% def · norm 66.7%
Takedowns stopped
635.3% def · norm 66.7%
55:3835.4% of cage time · norm 16.5%
Control time
22:4913.6% of cage time · norm 16.5%
36:413:29 per 15 · norm 2:48
Time under control
62:195:33 per 15 · norm 2:48
121.14/15 · norm 0.27
Submission attempts
151.34/15 · norm 0.27

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