Takashi Sato vs. Ben Saunders
Tale of the tape
The read
Level of competition
Takashi Sato
| Competition tier | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin | 2 | 5 |
| Tier 3 — regional circuit | 14 | 4 |
Tier-weighted record quality: 0.46 · 2 tier-1/2 wins · 13 finish wins over 25 documented bouts
In the UFC: 1-4 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.4 wins over .500
Ben Saunders
| Competition tier | W | L |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 — UFC / DWCS / PFL / Bellator / ONE / Rizin | 16 | 13 |
| Tier 3 — regional circuit | 7 | 0 |
Tier-weighted record quality: 0.99 · 16 tier-1/2 wins · 17 finish wins over 38 documented bouts
In the UFC: 4-5 against opponents who walked in above .500 · avg opponent walk-in record +1.8 wins over .500
Striking
Significant strikes — landed & absorbed
Where the fight happens (share of sig. strike attempts)
Takashi Sato
Distance 76.5% (norm 81.2%) · Clinch 7.3% (norm 9.4%) · Ground 16.2% (norm 8.1%)
Ben Saunders
Distance 71.9% (norm 81.2%) · Clinch 23.0% (norm 9.4%) · Ground 5.1% (norm 8.1%)
What they throw (share of sig. strike attempts by target)
Takashi Sato
Head 86.0% (norm 78.2%) · Body 11.1% (norm 12.4%) · Legs 2.9% (norm 8.4%)
Ben Saunders
Head 66.2% (norm 78.2%) · Body 27.6% (norm 12.4%) · Legs 6.2% (norm 8.4%)
Zone accuracy matrix Landed / attempted by zone
Green ≥ division median, red below. UFCStats tracks position and target as separate splits.
| Zone | Sato L/A | Acc | Welterweight med | Saunders L/A | Acc | Welterweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 76 / 241 | 31.5% | 38.6% | 285 / 696 | 40.9% | 38.6% |
| In the clinch | 17 / 23 | too few to rate | 67.8% | 160 / 223 | 71.7% | 67.8% |
| On the ground | 38 / 51 | 74.5% | 67.2% | 41 / 49 | 83.7% | 67.2% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 101 / 271 | 37.3% | 37.2% | 247 / 641 | 38.5% | 37.2% |
| To the body | 23 / 35 | 65.7% | 70.7% | 188 / 267 | 70.4% | 70.7% |
| To the legs | 7 / 9 | too few to rate | 82.9% | 51 / 60 | 85.0% | 82.9% |
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 (Welterweight: 182 fighters · Welterweight: 182 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 Sato L/A | Opp acc | Welterweight med | vs Saunders L/A | Opp acc | Welterweight med |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BY POSITION | ||||||
| At distance | 133 / 291 | 45.7% | 39.0% | 288 / 715 | 40.3% | 39.0% |
| In the clinch | 33 / 41 | 80.5% | 68.9% | 108 / 178 | 60.7% | 68.9% |
| On the ground | 55 / 63 | 87.3% | 68.0% | 142 / 208 | 68.3% | 68.0% |
| BY TARGET | ||||||
| To the head | 126 / 267 | 47.2% | 35.6% | 374 / 880 | 42.5% | 35.6% |
| To the body | 71 / 102 | 69.6% | 69.6% | 64 / 103 | 62.1% | 69.6% |
| To the legs | 24 / 26 | 92.3% | 82.1% | 100 / 118 | 84.7% | 82.1% |
Grappling
Bars compare the two men's rates (per-minute / per-15 figures), not raw totals — Saunders has more cage time on record.