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UFC 81: Breaking Point
Rob Emerson
Rob Emerson
7-6 · USA
VS
Keita Nakamura
Keita Nakamura
16-2-2 · JPN
February 2, 2008 · Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
Lightweight · 3 rounds
155.0lb
Weigh-in
155.0lb
Rob Emerson def. Keita Nakamura by S-DEC, R3 5:00
Performance
Round by round
SSTDKDCtrl
R1
Emerson29/690/000:00
Nakamura12/601/110:28
R2
Emerson26/700/000:00
Nakamura13/631/100:13
R3
Emerson26/730/000:00
Nakamura32/682/200:47
Total
Emerson81/2120/000:00
Nakamura57/1914/411:28

Scorecards

Emerson vs Nakamura

RdAdalaide ByrdAl LefkowitzJeff CollinsCommunity
R1---9.2-9.8
R2---9.8-9.2
R3---9.2-9.8
Total30-2730-2728-2928.2-28.8

Media (3 cards) · avg 2928 · 3 Emerson · 0 Nakamura

Official cards + public consensus via MMA Decisions. Per round: Emerson-Nakamura.

Pre-fight

The model's read going in

The walk-forward model's call at the time of the bout — persisted out-of-sample, with no hindsight about the result.

Prediction
EmersonWin probabilityNakamura
27.6%72.4%
KO / TKO
28%
Submission
23%
Decision
49%
Expected fight time: 10.7 min
What drives the pick

Each bar is a feature's push on the model from the center axis. Red pushes toward Emerson, blue toward Nakamura. Tap a bar for why.

Predicted outcomes
Emerson28%
Wins by
Model
Equity
Mkt
KO / TKO9%33%
Submission4%15%
Decision15%52%
Predicted output
Sig. strikes31 (1740)act 81
Takedowns0.4 (0.01.7)act 0
Nakamura72%
Wins by
Model
Equity
Mkt
KO / TKO19%26%
Submission19%26%
Decision34%48%
Predicted output
Sig. strikes30 (1638)act 57
Takedowns0.9 (0.02.9)act 4
Combined totals~60 sig strikes~1.3 takedownsmkt —
How it ends
mkt —
R118%
R224%
R39%
Distance49%
Fighter props
Most sig. strikestie 1.8%
Emerson
50.6%-106
Nakamura
+10647.6%
Most takedownstie 37.9%
Emerson
20.0%+210
Nakamura
-21042.1%
Significant strikes — over/under
Emerson
Expected: 30.5
30.5
Over 30.5
42.5%
+135
Under 30.5
57.5%
-135
03977
Nakamura
Expected: 29.5
29.5
Over 29.5
42.5%
+135
Under 29.5
57.5%
-135
03774
Takedowns — over/under
Emerson
Expected: 0.4
0.5
Over 0.5
31.6%
+217
Under 0.5
68.4%
-217
035
Nakamura
Expected: 0.9
1
Over 1
32.3%
+150
Exactly 1
19.1%
push
Under 1
48.6%
-150
035

Odds are model-implied (no real prop market is priced for these). The “most” prices are draw-no-bet — a tie (for takedowns, usually 0–0) is a push, so each side is priced off its chance of winning given a result, while the % shown is the raw chance of landing strictly more. Drag a line in half-point steps: a half line (e.g. 2.5) is a clean over/under, while a whole number adds a third outcome — landing exactly on it, a push — so over, exact and under sum to 100%. On a whole number the over/under odds are draw-no-bet (priced off the decisive mass, since the push refunds), so the two sides stay mirror images rather than implying an arbitrage.

Expected fight time 10.7 min. Predicted-output ranges are percentiles of the model’s simulated fights: sig strikes the middle 50% (25th–75th); takedowns the wider 10th–90th, since they’re 0 in most fights so a narrow band would collapse to 0. Win-by-method = win probability × that fighter’s own method split: the model forecasts how the fight ends, and that forecast is divided between the corners by each fighter’s finishing record — UFC wins in full, earlier-career wins at half weight, as of fight night — reconciled so the fighters’ totals still equal their win probabilities and the methods still total the fight-level forecast above. “Equity” is each of those over that fighter’s win % — how they win given that they win — so a column adds to 100%, and it differs by corner. A fighter with no classifiable wins at any level leans on the fight-level split. “How it ends” is the model’s round-of-finish split. “Mkt” is the de-vigged market prop (consensus across books), shown for context, not as a betting signal; rounds & totals slots fill as that data lands. Percentages are apportioned by largest remainder, so each set adds to its total exactly and an individual figure can sit a point off its own rounding.

Model vs market
Final
ModelMarketGapLine
To win
Emerson27.6%28.6%−1.0+238
Nakamura72.4%71.4%+1.0-283

Market % is the de-vigged (no-vig) consensus across the books that price both fighters; the line is the average across books with the min–max range in parentheses. Gap is the model minus the market in points (+ = the model rates that outcome above the market). Thin or one-sided markets are flagged or left blank rather than shown as a fabricated %. Shown for context, not as a bet — the closing line is the sharpest public price and the model trails it on average. For 5-round bouts the model splits its round-3+ finish mass into rounds 3–5 by the historical within-bucket rate, so the over-3.5 / 4.5 lines carry a model estimate.

Trait web
40.8Striking53.8
Nakamura +13.0
63.3Grappling56.3
Emerson +7.0
Str/minStr accStr defAbsorbedTD/15TD accTD defSubs
Hover a point to see the values
EmersonNakamura
Tale of the tape
Ratings (Elo)
1494
Pound-for-pound
1517
1494
Divisional
1548
1495
Striking offense
1496
1501
Striking defense
1506
1500
Grappling offense
1501
1494
Grappling defense
1494
Physical
26 yrs
Age
23 yrs
5'9"
Height
5'11"
70"
Reach
73"
Orthodox
Stance
Southpaw
Striking (UFC career)
0.53
Strikes landed / min
1.60
27%
Strike accuracy
36%
3.54
Strikes absorbed / min
3.37
44%
Strike defense
56%
Grappling (UFC career)
2.65
Takedowns / 15 min
1.00
100%
Takedown accuracy
67%
0%
Takedown defense
72%
2.7
Sub attempts / 15 min
0.5
Form & résumé
0%
UFC win rate
0%
-1
Win/loss streak
-2
0%
Last-5 win rate
0%
Finish rate
Recent opp. quality
224
Days since last fight
303
Recent form (last 5 UFC)
Rob Emerson
No prior UFC fights.
Keita Nakamura
  • LDrew FickettU-DEC R3
    Close +12510mo before
  • LBrock LarsonU-DEC R3
    1y 2mo before
Emerson — win / loss by method
Record: 7-6-0, 1 NC

Bar length is fight count (largest bar = full width); shading splits finishes by round and decisions by unanimous vs split — tap a bar for the round-by-round count.

KO/TKO
2 wins, 0 losses
W
29% of wins
L
0% of losses
Submission
2 wins, 0 losses
W
29% of wins
L
0% of losses
Decision
3 wins, 6 losses
W
43% of wins
L
100% of losses
UFC
0win0loss0draw1NC
WinsLosses
0 ()KO/TKO() 0
0 ()Submission() 0
0 ()Decision() 0
Non-UFC
7win6loss0draw0NC
WinsLosses
2 (29%)KO/TKO(0%) 0
2 (29%)Submission(0%) 0
3 (43%)Decision(100%) 6
Nakamura — win / loss by method
Record: 16-2-2

Bar length is fight count (largest bar = full width); shading splits finishes by round and decisions by unanimous vs split — tap a bar for the round-by-round count.

KO/TKO
2 wins, 0 losses
W
13% of wins
L
0% of losses
Submission
9 wins, 0 losses
W
56% of wins
L
0% of losses
Decision
5 wins, 2 losses
W
31% of wins
L
100% of losses
UFC
0win2loss0draw0NC
WinsLosses
0 ()KO/TKO(0%) 0
0 ()Submission(0%) 0
0 ()Decision(100%) 2
Non-UFC
16win0loss2draw0NC
WinsLosses
2 (13%)KO/TKO() 0
9 (56%)Submission() 0
5 (31%)Decision() 0

Profiles

Experience
Emerson
Nakamura
1
UFC fights
2
5.7 min · 5.7 avg
Octagon time
30.0 min · 15.0 avg
24y 1m
Career length
22y 9m
UFC schedule strength

Opponents' records on fight night — toggle their full cross-promotional record vs UFC bouts only.

Emerson
Nakamura
Overall
50W–6L · 89.3%
Wins
0W–0L
Losses
50W–6L · 89.3%
Non-UFC schedule strength
Emerson
Nakamura
124W–72L · 63.3%
Overall
56W–48L · 53.8%
63W–57L · 52.5%
Wins
56W–48L · 53.8%
61W–15L · 80.3%
Losses
0W–0L
Distance striking
Emerson
Nakamura
2.76
Landed / min
4.07
40.0%
Accuracy
30.7%
50.0%
Defense
71.3%
0.00
Knockdowns / 15 min
0.00
12.8%
Time at distance
25.4%
Grappling & control
Emerson
Nakamura
2.65
Takedowns / 15 min
1.00
100.0%
Takedown accuracy
66.7%
0.0%
Takedown defense
72.0%
2.65
Sub attempts / 15 min
0.50
3.6%
Control share
15.3%
Strike target map
Emerson
  • Head100%(3)div 68%
  • Body0%(0)div 19%
  • Legs0%(0)div 13%
Nakamura
  • Head90%(43)div 68%
  • Body8%(4)div 19%
  • Legs2%(1)div 13%

Where each fighter lands significant strikes (career). “div” = the weight-class average.

Rob Emerson
CloseSSTDKDCtrl

Per-fight: SS & TD shown landed/attempted; Close = consensus closing line.

Keita Nakamura
CloseSSTDKDCtrl

Per-fight: SS & TD shown landed/attempted; Close = consensus closing line.