Alexander Gustafsson was not going to be caught looking ahead.
While Jones has to take care of Glover Teixeira in April before a rematch with the talented Swede can come to fruition, Gustafsson’s post-fight comments made it clear that he has his sights firmly set on “Jonny Bones.” If and when it happens, there will be a lot more to talk about than just reach measurements. Here is a by-the-numbers look at UFC Fight Night 38, with statistics courtesy of FightMetric.com.
6: Finishes in the Octagon for Gustafsson, tying him for the third most in UFC light heavyweight history. Prior to his second-round stoppage of Manuwa, “The Mauler” had finishes against Vladimir Matyushenko, Matt Hamill, James Te Huna, Cyrille Diabate and Jared Hamman.
2.5: Difference in reach measurement for Gustafsson on Saturday’s Fight Pass tale of the tape (79 inches) and his profile on FightMetric.com (76.5 inches). Prior to facing Jon Jones at UFC 165, “The Mauler” claimed his reach was officially 81.5 inches.
100: Percentage of Manuwa’s 15 professional bouts that have been held in England. “Poster Boy” debuted in 2008 with a first-round stoppage of Tom King at Full Contact Fight Night 8 at the Mountbatten Centre in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England.
.867: Percentage of Manuwa’s 15 professional bouts that have ended via knockout or technical knockout victory for the “Posterboy.” Gustafsson became the first person to defeat the Keddles Gym representative on Saturday.
22: Octagon appearances for Melvin Guillard, the seventh most in UFC history. “The Young Assassin” has more bouts than anyone in UFC history competing at 155 pounds and below. The Louisiana native’s most recent outing was a disappointing one, however, as he dropped a unanimous verdict to former Blackzilians teammate Michael Johnson in a lightweight bout.
14: Ultimate Fighting Championship events staged in England after UFC Fight Night 38 on Saturday. The others: UFC 38, UFC 70, UFC 75, UFC 80, UFC 85, UFC 89, UFC 95, UFC 105, UFC 120, UFC 138, UFC on Fuel TV 5, UFC on Fuel TV 7 and UFC Fight Night 30
4: Weight classes in which Brad Pickett has competed as a professional mixed martial artist. Prior to his flyweight debut on Saturday, “One Punch” had fought at bantamweight, featherweight and lightweight.
2: Fighters who own victories over current flyweight ruler Demetrious Johnson in UFC/WEC competition. One is Dominick Cruz, who defended his bantamweight crown against “Mighty Mouse” at UFC Live 6. The other is Pickett, who took a unanimous decision over Johnson at WEC 48.
10: First-round finishes in the professional career of Iceland native Gunnar Nelson, who submitted Omari Akhmedov with a guillotine choke 4:36 into the opening frame of their welterweight clash.
5,467: Days since Cyrille Diabate made his professional debut, a second-round technical knockout victory over Ryuta Sakurai at Golden Trophy 1999 in France. The 40-year-old Frenchman retired following a his first-round submission loss to Ilir Latifi at UFC Fight Night 38 on Saturday. “The Snake” finishes his pro career with a 19-10-1 record.
.720: Career significant striking accuracy for Diabate in eight previous bouts documented by FightMetric.com. Diabate was unable to land a strike before tapping against Latifi, however.
10: Consecutive victories for Claudio Henrique da Silva following his three-round verdict over Brad Scott at middleweight. While the Brazilian’s first eight wins during that streak come via submission or TKO, the last two have gone the distance.
1: First-round submissions in UFC flyweight history after Louis Gaudinot tapped Phil Harris with a guillotine choke 1:13 into the opening round on Saturday. Of course, that also makes it the fastest submission in UFC flyweight history.