Sean Sherk vs. Hermes Franca

UFC 8-4-0 vs. 6-5-0

Tale of the tape

Green = edge on that line
8-4-0
UFC record
6-5-0
Lightweight
Division (benchmark)
Lightweight
53
AgeΔ 2 yrs
51
5'6"
HeightΔ 0"
5'6"
67"
ReachΔ 4"
71"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
190.4
Layoff (months)Δ 12.2 mo
202.6
WLWLW
Last 5 (newest first)
LWLLW

The read

Stats 25%+ off the division median
Hermes Franca is a submission threat — 2.31 attempts per 15 minutes, vs a 0.49 Lightweight norm.
Sean Sherk hunts takedowns — 4.01 per 15 minutes, vs a 1.38 Lightweight norm.
Sean Sherk owns the mat — in control 47% of cage time, vs a 20% Lightweight norm.

Level of competition

Full-career record by tier of opposition

Sean Sherk

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 94
Tier 3 — regional circuit 270

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.32 · 9 tier-1/2 wins · 21 finish wins over 41 documented bouts

In the UFC: 7-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +2.6 wins over .500

Hermes Franca

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 65
Tier 3 — regional circuit 2015

Tier-weighted record quality: 0.26 · 6 tier-1/2 wins · 23 finish wins over 47 documented bouts

In the UFC: 2-5 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.4 wins over .500

Striking

Career totals · norms = own-division medians

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

4152.22/min · norm 3.42
Sig. strikes landed
2581.73/min · norm 3.42
5452.92/min · norm 3.37
Sig. strikes absorbed
3952.64/min · norm 3.37
34.7%norm 43.5%
Striking accuracy
39.2%norm 43.5%
55.1%norm 56.3%
Striking defense
56.8%norm 56.3%
00.00/15 · norm 0.25
Knockdowns
40.40/15 · norm 0.25

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

Sean Sherk

Distance 73.0% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 11.3% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 15.7% (norm 8.0%)

Hermes Franca

Distance 77.7% (norm 82.8%) · Clinch 11.7% (norm 7.6%) · Ground 10.6% (norm 8.0%)

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

Sean Sherk

Head 90.6% (norm 78.2%) · Body 3.8% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 5.5% (norm 7.9%)

Hermes Franca

Head 82.5% (norm 78.2%) · Body 5.2% (norm 12.8%) · Legs 12.3% (norm 7.9%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Sherk L/AAccLightweight med Franca L/AAccLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 220 / 873 25.2% 37.9% 186 / 512 36.3% 37.9%
In the clinch 65 / 135 48.1% 67.3% 43 / 77 55.8% 67.3%
On the ground 130 / 188 69.1% 69.1% 29 / 70 41.4% 69.1%
BY TARGET
To the head 311 / 1084 28.7% 35.0% 173 / 544 31.8% 35.0%
To the body 43 / 46 93.5% 69.1% 26 / 34 76.5% 69.1%
To the legs 61 / 66 92.4% 81.9% 59 / 81 72.8% 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 Sherk L/AOpp accLightweight med vs Franca L/AOpp accLightweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 425 / 1030 41.3% 38.9% 194 / 546 35.5% 38.9%
In the clinch 52 / 79 65.8% 68.6% 37 / 62 59.7% 68.6%
On the ground 68 / 104 65.4% 68.0% 164 / 306 53.6% 68.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 426 / 1062 40.1% 35.1% 232 / 719 32.3% 35.1%
To the body 93 / 115 80.9% 68.1% 52 / 65 80.0% 68.1%
To the legs 26 / 36 72.2% 81.5% 111 / 130 85.4% 81.5%

Grappling

Takedowns, control, submissions vs. division norm
5044.2% acc · 4.01/15 · norm 1.38
Takedowns landed
1638.1% acc · 1.60/15 · norm 1.38
1356.5% def · norm 64.0%
Takedowns stopped
2536.8% def · norm 64.0%
87:1746.7% of cage time · norm 19.5%
Control time
18:2012.3% of cage time · norm 19.5%
22:161:47 per 15 · norm 2:46
Time under control
65:516:36 per 15 · norm 2:46
40.32/15 · norm 0.49
Submission attempts
232.31/15 · norm 0.49

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