Let’s be honest: Every now and then it’s fun to get down into the nitty-gritty statistics and see if we can’t perform some MMAth. It helps us analyze future fights and make predictions based on previous history. Fans of all sports do it, so why can’t we? It can help us look for potential trends in a fighter as well. So, with thanks to Sherdog and FightMetric.com for the raw data, let’s examine the main event of the upcoming UFC Fight Night 33: Mark Hunt vs Antonio Silva.
Stats for Suckas: Mark Hunt vs Antonio Silva
|
Mark Hunt |
Antonio Silva |
| Age | 39 | 34 |
| Camp | American Top Team | American Top Team |
| Record | 9-8 | 18-5 |
| Stance | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Reach | 79.0″ | 82.0″ |
| Win Percentage | 6 (T)KO (67%) 3 Decision (33%) |
13 (T)KO (72%) 3 Submissions (17%) 2 Decision (11%) |
| Loss Percentage | 2 (T)KO (25%) 6 Submissions (75%) |
4 (T)KO (80%) 1 Decision (20%) |
| Last (T)KO Victory | Mar. 3rd, 2013, over Stefan Struve | Feb. 2nd, 2013, over Alistair Overeem |
| Last Submission Victory | N/A | Sep. 29th, 2010, over Jim Yorke |
| Last Decision Victory | Sep. 24th, 2011, over Ben Rothwell | May 15th, 2010, over Andrei Arlovski |
| Last (T)KO Loss | May 25th, 2013, to Junior dos Santos | May 25th, 2013, to Cain Velasquez |
| Last Submission Loss | Sep. 25th, 2010, to Sean McCorkle | N/A |
| Last Decision Loss | N/A | Nov. 7th, 2009, to Fabricio Werdum |
| Submission Victories by Method | N/A | Arm Triangle 1x (33%) RNC 1x (33%) Punches 1x (33%) |
| Submission Losses by method | Armbar x3 (50%) Kimura 2x (33.3%) Keylock x1 (11.7%) |
N/A |
| Most Takedowns Allowed in a Fight | 2 | 3 |
| Fewest Significant Strikes in a Victory | 8, on Oct. 31st, 2004, against Dan Bobish | 15, on Oct. 5th, 2012, against Travis Browne |
| Decision Victories in the UFC | 1 | 0 |
| Significant Strikes Landed Per Minute | 3.43 | 2.73 |
| Striking Accuracy | 44% | 43% |
| Significant Strikes Absorbed Per Minute | 2.2 | 2.51 |
| Striking Defense | 57% | 55% |
| Average Takedown Attempts per 15 Min. | 0.72 | 1.23 |
| Takedown Accuracy | 58% | 40% |
| Takedown Defense Percentage | 69% | 67% |
| Average Submission per 15 Min. | 0.41 | 1.23 |
| Average Submission Completion Rate | 0.00% | 19.70% |
| Most Significant Strikes Landed in a Fight | 113, on Feb. 26th, 2006, against Yosuko Nishijima | 47, on May 15th, 2010, against Andrei Arlovski |
| Total Fight Time | 2 hrs, 26 min, 24 sec | 2 hrs, 3 min, 45 sec |
This is actually tough to call. Both Hunt and Silva were stopped in their last fights, and it’s not the first time either man has been TKOed. Still, Hunt has the slight edge in striking, and has certainly improved his takedown defense. If the “Super Samoan” can find his range, he’s shown himself to be more than capable of finishing significantly taller opponents. I believe he’ll find his range, too. Antonio Silva is not a swift man, whereas Mark Hunt is deceptively nimble for his size. Given those facts, I predict Mark Hunt takes this by KO, likely in the 2nd round.
