Shamil Abdurakhimov vs. Curtis Blaydes

UFC 5-6-0 vs. 14-6-0 (1 NC)

Tale of the tape

Green = edge on that line
5-6-0
UFC record
14-6-0 (1 NC)
Heavyweight
Division (benchmark)
Heavyweight
44
AgeΔ 9 yrs
35
6'3"
HeightΔ 1"
6'4"
76"
ReachΔ 4"
80"
Orthodox
Stance
Orthodox
42.5
Layoff (months)Δ 38.6 mo
3.9
LLLLW
Last 5 (newest first)
LWLWL

The read

Stats 25%+ off the division median
Curtis Blaydes hunts takedowns — 5.12 per 15 minutes, vs a 0.95 Heavyweight norm.
Curtis Blaydes owns the mat — in control 45% of cage time, vs a 17% Heavyweight norm.
Shamil Abdurakhimov's takedown defense leaks — 46% stopped, vs a 64% Heavyweight norm.

Level of competition

Full-career record by tier of opposition

Shamil Abdurakhimov

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 56
Tier 3 — regional circuit 152

Tier-weighted record quality: 0.76 · 5 tier-1/2 wins · 13 finish wins over 28 documented bouts

In the UFC: 2-5 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.9 wins over .500

Curtis Blaydes

Competition tierWL
Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin 146
Tier 2 — LFA / Cage Warriors (feeder belts) 10
Tier 3 — regional circuit 40

Tier-weighted record quality: 1.44 · 15 tier-1/2 wins · 13 finish wins over 26 documented bouts

In the UFC: 11-6 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +3.6 wins over .500

Striking

Career totals · norms = own-division medians

Significant strikes — landed & absorbed

2512.41/min · norm 3.36
Sig. strikes landed
8094.18/min · norm 3.36
3143.02/min · norm 3.19
Sig. strikes absorbed
5342.76/min · norm 3.19
44.3%norm 47.8%
Striking accuracy
52.1%norm 47.8%
55.5%norm 52.5%
Striking defense
53.9%norm 52.5%
20.29/15 · norm 0.28
Knockdowns
20.16/15 · norm 0.28

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

Shamil Abdurakhimov

Distance 78.3% (norm 79.5%) · Clinch 16.2% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 5.5% (norm 9.3%)

Curtis Blaydes

Distance 69.1% (norm 79.5%) · Clinch 11.4% (norm 9.8%) · Ground 19.5% (norm 9.3%)

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

Shamil Abdurakhimov

Head 73.9% (norm 79.2%) · Body 13.1% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 13.1% (norm 7.6%)

Curtis Blaydes

Head 83.7% (norm 79.2%) · Body 6.6% (norm 11.5%) · Legs 9.7% (norm 7.6%)

Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone

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

Zone Abdurakhimov L/AAccHeavyweight med Blaydes L/AAccHeavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 169 / 444 38.1% 40.1% 421 / 1073 39.2% 40.1%
In the clinch 60 / 92 65.2% 70.6% 145 / 177 81.9% 70.6%
On the ground 22 / 31 71.0% 70.2% 243 / 302 80.5% 70.2%
BY TARGET
To the head 149 / 419 35.6% 38.9% 585 / 1299 45.0% 38.9%
To the body 47 / 74 63.5% 76.8% 89 / 103 86.4% 76.8%
To the legs 55 / 74 74.3% 87.8% 135 / 150 90.0% 87.8%

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 (Heavyweight: 93 fighters · 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 Abdurakhimov L/AOpp accHeavyweight med vs Blaydes L/AOpp accHeavyweight med
BY POSITION
At distance 118 / 408 28.9% 40.7% 427 / 1021 41.8% 40.7%
In the clinch 59 / 104 56.7% 70.6% 82 / 108 75.9% 70.6%
On the ground 137 / 193 71.0% 72.0% 25 / 30 83.3% 72.0%
BY TARGET
To the head 237 / 601 39.4% 38.8% 440 / 1037 42.4% 38.8%
To the body 44 / 65 67.7% 75.1% 64 / 87 73.6% 75.1%
To the legs 33 / 39 84.6% 84.4% 30 / 35 85.7% 84.4%

Grappling

Takedowns, control, submissions vs. division norm
723.3% acc · 1.01/15 · norm 0.95
Takedowns landed
6647.8% acc · 5.12/15 · norm 0.95
1045.5% def · norm 64.3%
Takedowns stopped
735.0% def · norm 64.3%
12:1411.8% of cage time · norm 17.2%
Control time
87:4245.3% of cage time · norm 17.2%
18:192:38 per 15 · norm 2:28
Time under control
8:550:41 per 15 · norm 2:28
10.14/15 · norm 0.16
Submission attempts
00.00/15 · norm 0.16

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