There will be no shortage of ambition present when Grant
Dawson confronts Jared
Gordon in a UFC
on ESPN 35 lightweight showcase this Saturday at the UFC Apex
in Las Vegas, where the victor figures to take a significant step
forward in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight division.
Dawson has not tasted defeat in nearly six years, the Glory MMA
representative having compiled an 8-0-1 record across his past nine
outings. He last competed at UFC Fight Night 196, where he settled
for a majority draw against former
World Series of Fighting champion Ricky Glenn
on Oct. 23. Gordon, meanwhile, enters the cage on the strength of a
three-fight winning streak. He last appeared on Oct. 2, when he
eked out a split decision over Joe Solecki
in their UFC Fight Night 193 pairing.
As Dawson and Gordon approach their high-stakes battle at 155
pounds, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied them to
this point:
28: Years of age for Dawson, who was born on Feb.
20, 1994 in Stromsburg, Nebraska.
11: Dawson wins by submission, accounting for 65%
of his career total (17). His methods of choice: nine rear-naked
chokes, one triangle choke and one armbar. Dawson holds four other
wins by knockout or technical knockout and two more by
decision.
105: Seconds needed for Dawson to put away
Adam
Rider with a rear-naked choke under the Shamrock Fighting
Championships banner on March 7, 2015. Having occurred more than
seven years ago, it remains the fastest finish of his 19-fight
career.
5: UFC appearances in which Dawson has recorded
multiple takedowns. He executed a career-high six of them in a
three-round unanimous decision over Julian
Erosa at UFC Fight Night 146 in 2019.
92: Combined victories between the five men—Erosa,
Leonardo
Santos, Nad
Narimani, Darrick
Minner and Michael
Trizano—Dawson has beaten inside the Octagon. They sport a
cumulative .730 winning percentage (92-33-1).
33: Years of age for Gordon, who was born in
Queens, New York, on Sept. 6, 1988.
6: Gordon victories by knockout or technical
knockout, accounting for 33% of his career total (18). His list of
victims includes Michael
Quinones and Anthony
Morrison. Gordon owns two other victories by submission and 10
more by decision.
45: Rounds completed by Gordon as a professional
mixed martial artist. The onetime
Cage Fury Fighting Championships titleholder has gone the
distance on 10 different occasions and carries a perfect 10-0
record in those bouts.
116: Significant strikes landed by Gordon in his
third-round knockout loss to Joaquim
Silva at UFC on Fox 31 in December 2018. It established a
personal high-water mark for the
Sanford MMA export that stands to this day.
.736: Cumulative winning percentage between the
six opponents—Solecki, Quinones, Danny
Chavez, Chris
Fishgold, Dan Moret and
Hacran
Dias—Gordon has defeated since he joined the UFC roster in
2017. They boast a combined record of 89-29-3.
