By the Numbers: Josh Emmett vs. Mirsad Bektic

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With both fighters moving up the ranks, featherweight prospects Josh Emmett and Mirsad Bektic seemed bound to collide. The time has now come, as UFC Fight Night 155 brings fans this thrilling encounter scheduled on July 13 at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California. Let the numbers below provide insight on this upcoming duel.

UFC appearances

Both Bektic and Emmett are on their way to their eighth Ultimate Fighting Championship appearance. The former debuted on April 19, 2014 with a majority decision victory over Chas Skelly. Since then, he has lost only once, parading an impressive record of 6-1. That lone defeat came at the hands of Darren Elkins, in a fight Bektic was dominating, until “The Damage” landed some solid punches and a head kick that ended the bout in round three.

Emmett’s UFC record is also an excellent one at 5-2. On May 8, 2016, he debuted with a split decision victory over Jon Tuck. It was a standup battle that saw Emmett ahead by the slimmest of margins in terms of significant strikes landed with 54-53. In the end, Emmett earned majority of the judges’ nods.

Common opponent: Ricardo Lamas

Emmett earned the biggest win of his career when he knocked out former UFC title challenger Ricardo Lamas. The Team Alpha Male representative came into their UFC on Fox 26 encounter a clear underdog to the crafty Chicago native, who found himself at the bitter end of a brutal left hook. The end came at 4:33 of the first round. Before that, Lamas was notably leading Emmett in significant strikes landed with 17-10.

Bektic also has a victory over Lamas, but his came via split decision. He nonetheless stifled “The Bully” on his way to taking a split decision (29-28, 28-29 and 30-27). While slightly trailing Lamas in significant strikes landed (31-34), Bektic was able to score two takedowns.

Striking accuracy

After seven fights in the Octagon, Bektic attempted 445 significant strikes, landing 207. That makes for a 47 percent striking accuracy. His highest output was 60 when he was stopped by Elkins at UFC 209. Emmett is the more voluminous striker between the two, with his highest output recorded at 87 against Scott Holtzman. As aforementioned, he’s also had seven fights in the UFC and has connected 299 of the 830 significant strikes he has thrown. His striking accuracy, though, is lower at 36 percent.

Takedown accuracy

Emmett completed nine out of the 20 takedowns he has attempted in UFC competition, making for a 45 percent takedown accuracy. His most in a single fight was also against Holtzman at eight. As for Bektic, he holds an impressive 53 percent takedown accuracy, having landed 17 out of the 32 takedowns he has attempted. Bektic landed four takedowns each on Elkins and Russell Doane.

Career losses

As previously stated, Bektic bowed to Elkins at UFC 209. To this day, it remains the only loss of his career. His next opponent, Emmett, has two losses to Desmond Green and Jeremy Stephens.