UFC 328 sees rare double occurrence: fighters with 8+ takedowns lose title fights

UFC 328 witnessed a rare statistical anomaly occurring twice in one night, as both Khamzat Chimaev and Tatsuro Taira lost their title fights despite recording eight and nine takedowns respectively. Historically, fighters who land five or more takedowns in UFC title fights win 81.08% of the time, with that percentage rising to 83% for those landing seven or more. Taira's performance was particularly notable as he secured nearly 11 minutes of control time with quality takedowns, yet was still finished by Joshua Van, who never gave up his back despite Taira's specialization in back control submissions. The results highlight that even elite-level wrestling cannot guarantee victory against well-rounded strikers, especially when factors like weight cuts, injuries, or health issues compromise a wrestler's performance. The analysis suggests that total MMA universalism may be more valuable than specialized wrestling dominance in modern championship competition.