Compare Azamat Murzakanov vs Magomed Ankalaev — UFC matchup breakdown
Tale of the Tape
The biometric deltas where one side genuinely has an edge.
Activity & layoff
The recency dimension Tale of the Tape doesn't carry. How active each fighter has been, and how that compares to active peers in their division.
- Magomed has 6 months more layoff
Division percentiles below rank both fighters against the Light Heavyweight roster (264 fighters).
Recent form
Last five pro bouts (non-UFC fights dashed + tagged), current trajectory, and the level of opposition going into this matchup.
Common opponents
The single UFC opponent both fighters have faced. Reads as a directional signal, not a verdict.
Schedule Score
Who they've faced × what they've done. Composite + components compared head-to-head, percentile-ranked against every UFC fighter w/ ≥3 resolved bouts.
Per-tier records + bout-by-bout
| Tier | Azamat Murzakanov | Magomed Ankalaev |
|---|---|---|
| Champion | — | 1-1-1 |
| Top-5 | 1-0 | 5-0 |
| Top-15 | 2-1 | 3-1, 1 NC |
| Building | 1-0 | — |
| Unproven | 2-0 | 3-0 |
- L vs Paulo Costa63Apr 11, 2026 · Top-15
- W vs Aleksandar Rakic#782Oct 25, 2025 · Top-5
- W vs Brendson Ribeiro12Jun 7, 2025 · Unproven
- W vs Alonzo Menifield#1366Aug 3, 2024 · Top-15
- W vs Dustin Jacoby#1363Apr 15, 2023 · Top-15
- W vs Devin Clark22Aug 13, 2022 · Building
- W vs Tafon Nchukwi12Mar 12, 2022 · Unproven
- L vs Alex Pereira#198Oct 4, 2025 · Champion
- W vs Alex PereiraCHAMP100Mar 8, 2025 · Champion
- W vs Aleksandar Rakic#584Oct 26, 2024 · Top-5
- W vs Johnny Walker#773Jan 13, 2024 · Top-15
- NC vs Johnny Walker#773Oct 21, 2023 · Top-15
- D vs Jan Blachowicz#197Dec 10, 2022 · Champion
- W vs Anthony Smith#584Jul 30, 2022 · Top-5
- W vs Thiago Santos#586Mar 12, 2022 · Top-5
- W vs Volkan Oezdemir#882Oct 30, 2021 · Top-5
- W vs Nikita Krylov#876Feb 27, 2021 · Top-5
- W vs Ion Cutelaba45Oct 24, 2020 · Top-15
- W vs Ion Cutelaba45Feb 29, 2020 · Top-15
- W vs Dalcha Lungiambula8Nov 9, 2019 · Unproven
- W vs Klidson Abreu8Feb 23, 2019 · Unproven
- W vs Marcin Prachnio8Sep 15, 2018 · Unproven
- L vs Paul Craig49Mar 17, 2018 · Top-15
All figures are 0–100 ratings (shown as %), not percentages of anything literal. Schedule strength = the average quality of every UFC opponent faced (win or lose). Win quality = the average quality of the opponents actually beaten. The composite Schedule Score combines schedule strength (65%) with win quality (35%). Per-bout opponent quality is scored on rank-at-time-of-fight (champion 100, ranks 1–5 = 90→78, ranks 6–15 = 75→60), with cross-division and P4P signals layered on, falling back to opponent UFC record-at-time for unranked opponents. For fighters with limited UFC experience the headline is held toward a rookie baseline, so debut / low-sample fighters read lower than established names. UFC ranking data is sparse before December 2018, so legacy-era fighters score from record-at-time when ranks are missing.
Career splits
Striking matchup
Each fighter's offense mapped against the other's defense — where one attacks meets where the other gets hit, across head, body, and leg. Per 15 minutes of UFC fight time.
Evenly matched striking — no clear edge either way.
Where Murzakanov attacks (green = high volume) vs where Ankalaev gets hit (red = vulnerable) — Murzakanov’s green zones meeting Ankalaev’s red zones are the openings.
- Head71%74th201
- Body25%77th71
- Leg4%35th11
Color = division rank · green elite → red low · % = share of strikes
- Head31%91st149
- Body23%53rd111
- Leg45%7th215
Color = division rank · green elite → red low · % = share absorbed · partly opponent-dependent
- Standing69%196
- Clinch6%18
- Ground24%69
- Standing86%410
- Clinch8%39
- Ground5%26
Each lane: the attacker’s strike rate (offense) vs the other’s rate absorbed (defense), graded on the division. The bar leans toward whoever wins the exchange — longer + greener = a bigger, higher-quality edge.
Full breakdown — all zones, both views
| Zone | Fighter | Landed / 15 | Accuracy | Absorbed / 15 | Career landed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Head | Azamat Murzakanov | top 26% of division41.1 | 50% | above division average28.7 | 201 |
| Head | Magomed Ankalaev | around division average30.7 | 41% | top 9% of division16.8 | 376 |
| Body | Azamat Murzakanov | top 23% of division14.0 | 81% | below division average11.3 | 71 |
| Body | Magomed Ankalaev | top 23% of division14.0 | 74% | around division average9.2 | 186 |
| Leg | Azamat Murzakanov | below division average5.0 | 92% | well below average11.9 | 11 |
| Leg | Magomed Ankalaev | above division average9.1 | 91% | bottom of the division15.7 | 115 |
Per-15-minute rates are sourced from UFCStats fight totals across each fighter’s UFC career. Division percentile is computed against every UFC fighter who has competed in this weight class with at least two recorded bouts. Lower “absorbed” values are better — the percentile is inverted so “top of division” always means better outcome.
Grappling matchup
Takedowns, submission threat, and control. Per 15 minutes of UFC fight time, with takedown defense as a percentage of opponent attempts stopped.
Each metric graded on the division — the bar leans toward whoever wins that part of the grappling exchange (longer + greener = a bigger edge).
Evenly matched grappling — no clear edge either way.
Full breakdown — career grappling totals
| Metric | Azamat Murzakanov | Magomed Ankalaev |
|---|---|---|
| Takedowns landed / 15career takedowns | 0.73 | 0.79 |
| Takedown accuracycareer landed / attempted | 21%3 / 14 | 20%9 / 44 |
| Takedown defensecareer stopped / faced | 89%8 / 9 | 88%21 / 24 |
| Submission attempts / 15career attempts | 0.21 | 0.00 |
| Control time / 15 (min)career total | 1.5 min6:08 | 4.1 min50:35 |
| Time controlled by opponent / 15 (min)career total | 1.6 min6:33 | 0.5 min6:44 |
All rates computed from UFCStats fight totals across each fighter’s UFC career. Takedown defense = opponent attempts stopped ÷ opponent total attempts. Control time figures are minutes the fighter spent in a dominant position per 15 minutes of fight time. Accuracy under 8 career attempts is shown raw and ungraded — too small a sample to rate against the division.
Finishing & durability
How often each fighter ends fights early — and how often they get put away. Outcomes view, not per-minute output.
When their fights end
every pro finish on the fight clockFinish & durability rates
Full professional career
Full method breakdown
| Outcome | Azamat Murzakanov | Magomed Ankalaev |
|---|---|---|
| Wins | ||
| by KO / TKO | 12(75%) | 10(50%) |
| by submission | 1(6%) | 0(0%) |
| by decision | 3(19%) | 10(50%) |
| Losses | ||
| by KO / TKO | 1(100%) | 1(50%) |
| by submission | 0(0%) | 1(50%) |
| by decision | 0(0%) | 0(0%) |
Full professional career method splits, graded against the full-pro division distribution. Career KO losses are the total — clean knockouts and cut/injury stoppages can’t be separated outside the UFC corpus. Finish-time pace is UFC-only.
KO history
UFC fights only — knockout power and chin durability, head-to-head, then when the last finish landed, and on whom.
- Last time KO'dvs Paulo Costa2 months agoUFC 327: Prochazka vs. Ulberg · Apr 11, 2026 · R3 · 1:23
- Last time submittedNever submitted in the UFC
- Last time KO'dvs Alex Pereira8 months agoUFC 320: Ankalaev vs. Pereira 2 · Oct 4, 2025 · R1 · 1:20
- Last time submittedvs Paul Craig8y 3mo agoUFC Fight Night: Werdum vs. Volkov · Mar 17, 2018 · R3 · 4:59
Pace & fade
How each fighter's work rate holds up as a fight wears on — round-by-round output (striking, takedown attempts, and control time combined), and whether they fade. The fade % compares round-3 output to round 1 over bouts that reached the third round.
Both lean the same way, but Murzakanov leans harder: Murzakanov builds (+30% per round through round 3), Ankalaev builds (+15% per round through round 3). Within fights that reached round 3, Murzakanov lifts to 223% of round-1 output by round 3, Ankalaev 142%.
Rounds backed by fewer than 2 bouts are drawn smaller and dimmed with an n= count — a deep round seen in one or two fights is a thin sample, not a settled rate. Per-round bout counts are in the breakdown below.
Full per-round breakdown — both fighters
What drives the pace · per round
The composite output line above blends these three inputs. Splitting them out shows whether a fighter’s work rate is built on striking volume, takedown pressure, or top control — and which input fades.
| Round | Fighter | Output / min | Sig landed / min | Sig absorbed / min | TD att / min | Control | Bouts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | Azamat Murzakanov | 4.0 | 3.3 | 2.8 | 0.13 | 7% | 7 |
| R1 | Magomed Ankalaev | 4.2 | 3.4 | 3.0 | 0.11 | 11% | 15 |
| R2 | Azamat Murzakanov | 6.8 | 5.4 | 3.3 | 0.30 | 14% | 5 |
| R2 | Magomed Ankalaev | 5.6 | 4.1 | 2.9 | 0.14 | 27% | 11 |
| R3 | Azamat Murzakanov | 7.7 | 6.4 | 5.1 | 0.36 | 5% | 4 |
| R3 | Magomed Ankalaev | 5.8 | 3.6 | 2.4 | 0.37 | 28% | 9 |
| R4 | Azamat Murzakanov | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| R4 | Magomed Ankalaev | 7.6 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 0.60 | 62% | 3 |
| R5 | Azamat Murzakanov | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| R5 | Magomed Ankalaev | 7.1 | 3.5 | 1.4 | 0.40 | 59% | 3 |
Output / minis the headline work rate — significant strikes landed, plus 3 per takedown attempt, plus one per 15 seconds of control — so a takedown-and-grind round isn’t scored as idle the way bare striking volume would. The remaining columns are its components. Per-round rates use UFCStats per-round data (available for ~95% of bouts since 2008). Each round’s rates are averaged only over bouts that reached that round, so the bout count shrinks as rounds deepen. The final round of a finished fight is pro-rated by its actual length — a 2:30 stoppage counts as 2.5 minutes, not five — so an early finish doesn’t distort the per-minute pace.