By the Numbers: Jimmie Rivera vs. Petr Yan

The ordering process for Ultimate Fighting Championship pay-per-views has changed: UFC 238 is only available on ESPN+ in the U.S.

Bantamweight strikers Petr Yan and Jimmie Rivera add thrill to an already stacked UFC 238 card. The former has been terrorizing opponents since joining the Ultimate Fighting Championship while the latter is hungry to bounce back from a recent setback. This one is a solid scrap that may just steal the show on June 8 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. Let the numbers below show why it is a contender for Fight of the Night.

Octagon appearances

When Yan made his Octagon debut on June 23, 2018, Rivera had just suffered his first defeat in the UFC after six fights. Rivera was knocked out by Marlon Moraes at the main event of UFC Fight Night 131.

Rivera’s debut happened three years ago at UFC Fight Night 72. He is now 6-2 in the promotion, with wins over Marcus Brimage, Pedro Munhoz, Iuri Alcantara, Urijah Faber, Thomas Almeida and John Dodson, and losses to Moraes and Aljamain Sterling.

Yan also has a win over Dodson in his most recent outing and his first fight for the year. He was quite active in 2018, having fought three times in six months, beating Douglas Silva de Andrade, Jin Soo Son and Teruto Ishihara. Yan currently holds a 4-0 record in the UFC.

Winning streak

As aforementioned, Yan has yet to taste defeat since joining the UFC last year. But even before that, the Russian was tearing up the mixed martial arts scene in Russia. He decisioned Ed Arthur and took Fight of the Night honors at ACB 41 in July 2016. For his next fight, he avenged his only loss to Magomed Magomedov by outpointing him to win the ACB bantamweight championship. He later defended it against Matheus Mattos with a TKO win. In all, Yan is on a seven-fight winning run.

Rivera hasn’t been as consistent as Yan. After winning his first five UFC fights, he suffered his first Octagon loss to Moraes. He bounced back by beating Dodson but fell short to Sterling this past February. As he is coming off a loss, “El Terror” is looking to get his groove back and start a new winning streak.

Finishing rate

Rivera isn’t exactly known to finish fights, but he gets the job done. Of his 22 career victories, 16 have come by decision. He owns four wins by KO or TKO and two by submission, making for a lowly 27 percent finishing rate. His lone UFC stoppage victim is Brimage.

In contrast, Yan is more of the finisher who relies mostly on his heavy hands. He has five wins by KO or TKO and one by submission, registering a 50% finishing rate. In the UFC, he has stopped Ishihara and de Andrade.

Career losses

The slightly younger Yan has lost only once in his 13-fight career, bowing to Magomedov via split decision. He later avenged this loss and has been phenomenal since then. At 22-3, Rivera also has an excellent professional record. His three defeats were dealt by Jason McLean, and as previously mentioned, Moraes and Sterling.