UFC 207 pre-fight facts: Garbrandt looking for number two slot on bantamweight knockout list

The UFC’s year-end fight card is always one of its biggest. That trend continues as the promotion closes out 2016.

Saturday’s UFC 207 event takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas with the main card on pay-per-view following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass. Two championship bouts top the bill, with four fighters who have combined for 22 victories in 24 octagon appearances.

In the main event, women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes (13-4 MMA, 6-1 UFC) will attempt to spoil the long-awaited return of Ronda Rousey (12-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC). The co-headliner will see men’s 135-pound titleholder Dominick Cruz (22-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) as he aims to shut down unbeaten contender Cody Garbrandt (10-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC).

All four athletes boast impressive resumes going into arguably their most important fights to date. For more insight, here are 85 pre-fight facts about UFC 207.

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Main event

Amanda Nunes

Nunes competes in her eighth UFC women’s bantamweight bout, tied with Rousey and Raquel Pennington for second most in divisional history behind Miesha Tate (nine).

Nunes’ four-fight UFC winning streak in women’s bantamweight competition is tied with Pennington and Julianna Pena for the longest active streak in the division.

Nunes’ six victories in UFC women’s bantamweight competition are tied with Rousey and Pennington for most in divisional history

Nunes’ five stoppage victories in UFC women’s bantamweight competition are second most in divisional history behind Rousey (six).

Nunes’ five first-round finishes in UFC/Strikeforce women’s bantamweight competition are second most in combined divisional history behind Rousey (seven).

Nunes’ three knockout victories in UFC women’s bantamweight competition are tied with Rousey for most in divisional history.

Nunes has earned five of her six UFC victories by first-round stoppage.

Nunes has earned 12 of her 13 career victories by stoppage.

Rousey owns or is on the verge of owning several women’s bantamweight and overall UFC records, all of which can be viewed on her complete UFC career stat sheet.

Co-main event

Dominick Cruz

Cruz is one of seven fighters in UFC history to have two or more title reigns in one weight class. Randy Couture, Tim Sylvia, Cain Velasquez, Matt Hughes, Georges St-Pierre and Jose Aldo also accomplished the feat.

Cruz became the second fighter in UFC history to win a belt by split decision when he defeated T.J. Dillashaw at UFC Fight Night 81. Robbie Lawler also accomplished the feat against Johny Hendricks at UFC 181.

Cruz enters the event on a career-high 13-fight winning streak. He hasn’t suffered a defeat since March 2007.

Cruz’s 12-fight winning streak in UFC/WEC/Strikeforce/PRIDE competition is tied for the fourth longest streak in the combined history of the four organizations behind Anderson Silva (16), Aldo (15) and Jon Jones (13).

Cruz’s 12 victories in UFC/WEC bantamweight competition are the most in combined divisional history.

Cruz’s five-fight UFC winning streak in bantamweight competition is the longest active streak in the division.

Cruz has earned four of his five UFC victories by decision. He has earned 14 of his 22 career wins overall by going the distance.

Cruz’s average fight time of 20:12 in UFC competition is the longest in company history.

Cruz landed 243 total strikes in his WEC 53 victory over Scott Jorgensen, the most ever in a UFC/WEC bantamweight contest.

Cruz defends 72.1 percent of all opponent significant strike attempts in UFC competition, the highest rate among active fighters and fourth highest overall in company history.

Cruz’s 48 takedowns landed in UFC/WEC bantamweight competition are the most in combined divisional history.

Cody Garbrandt

Garbrandt’s four-fight UFC winning streak in bantamweight competition is the second longest active streak in the division behind Cruz (five).

Garbrandt has earned nine of his 10 career victories by knockout. That includes four of his five UFC wins.

Garbrandt’s three knockout victories in UFC bantamweight competition are fourth most in divisional history behind Dillashaw (five), Thomas Almeida (four) and Eddie Wineland (four).

Garbrandt’s five knockdowns landed in UFC bantamweight competition are tied for second most in divisional history behind Wineland (six).

Garbrandt’s lands 2.38 knockdowns per 15 minutes of fighting in UFC competition, the third highest rate among active fighters behind Marcos Rogerio de Lima (4.29) and Todd Duffee (2.72).

Remaining main card

T.J. Dillashaw

T.J. Dillashaw’s (13-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) is one of six contestants from “The Ultimate Fighter” to win a UFC championship.

Dillashaw competes in his 13th UFC bantamweight bout, the third most appearances in divisional history behind Urijah Faber (15) and Takeya Mizugaki (14).

Dillashaw’s nine victories in UFC bantamweight competition are the second most in divisional history behind Faber (10).

Dillashaw’s six stoppage victories in UFC bantamweight competition are tied with Faber for most in divisional history.

Dillashaw’s five knockout victories in UFC bantamweight competition are the most in divisional history.

Dillashaw’s five knockdowns landed in UFC bantamweight competition are tied for second most in divisional history behind Wineland (six).

Dillashaw is the only fighter in UFC history to land 100 or more significant strikes in five consecutive fights.

Dillashaw scored the latest head-kick knockout finish in UFC history when he stopped Joe Soto at the 2:20 mark of Round 5 at UFC 177.

Dillashaw is one of two fighters in UFC history to earn two fifth-round stoppage victories. He accomplished the feat against Soto at UFC 177 and Renan Barao at UFC 173. Flyweight champ Demetrious Johnson also accomplished the feat.

Dillashaw lands 5.44 strikes landed per minute in UFC bantamweight competition, the second highest rate in divisional history behind Thomas Almeida (6.46).

Dillashaw’s 11 submission attempts in UFC bantamweight competition are second most in divisional history behind Alex Caceres (12).

Dillashaw’s six fight-night bonuses for UFC bantamweight bouts are the most in divisional history.

John Lineker (29-7 MMA, 10-2 UFC) is 4-0 since he returned to the bantamweight division in September 2015.

Lineker is 10-1 in his past 11 UFC appearances. He’s earned victories in 23 of his past 25 fight overall.

Lineker has 10 knockdown landed in UFC competition, but he’s never been knocked down, himself.

Lineker is one of three fighters in UFC history to score three knockdowns in two different fights. A. Silva and McGregor also accomplished the feat.

Lineker’s seven knockdowns landed in UFC flyweight competition are most in divisional history.

Lineker and Francisco Rivera’s 100 combined strike attempts at UFC 191 are the most in UFC history for any fight to last a half-round or less.

Lineker has missed weight ahead of five UFC fights, the most in company history.

Preliminary card card

Johny Hendricks

Johny Hendricks (17-5 MMA, 12-5 UFC) enters the event on the first two-fight skid of his career.

Hendricks is one of five fighters in UFC history to record three or more knockout victories in less than one minute each.

Hendricks and Lawler combined for 308 significant strikes landed at UFC 171, the second most ever for a UFC title fight behind Jedrzejczyk vs. Letourneau at UFC 193 (323 combined significant strikes).

Hendricks and Lawler attempted 728 significant strikes at UFC 171, the third most ever in single UFC bout. Cole Miller and Nam Phan hold the record for 788 significant strikes attempted at UFC on FOX 4.

Hendricks’ 55 takedowns landed in UFC welterweight competition are second most in divisional history behind St-Pierre (87).

Hendricks has been awarded six fight-night bonuses for UFC welterweight bouts, tied for third most in divisional history behind Chris Lytle (10) and Carlos Condit (seven).

Neil Magny (18-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC) 11 victories in UFC competition since 2013 are second most in the company behind Donald Cerrone (13).

Magny is the only fighter in modern UFC history to make five or more octagon appearances in consecutive years. He went 4-1 in 2015 year after going 5-0 in 2014.

Magny’s five UFC victories in 2014 tied Roger Huerta’s record for most octagon wins in a calendar year. Huerta accomplished the feat in 2007.

Magny’s 100 significant ground strikes landed against Hector Lombard at UFC Fight Night 85 stand as the single-fight UFC record.

Magny’s 142 total strikes landed in the second round of his victory against Lombard stand as the third most in a single UFC round.

Dong Hyun Kim (21-3-1 MMA, 12-3 UFC) has earned his past four UFC victories by stoppage.

Kim is the only fighter in UFC history to earn a knockout stemming from a spinning back elbow. He accomplished the feat against John Hathaway at UFC Fight Night 34.

Kim is one of five fighters in UFC history to earn a knockout victory stemming from the crucifix position. Jon Jones, Paul Kelly, Matt Hughes and Gary Goodridge also accomplished the feat.

Tarec Saffiedine (16-5 MMA, 2-2 UFC) is the only Belgian-born fighter to earn a UFC victory.

Saffiedine has alternated wins and losses over his four-fight UFC career.

Saffiedine was the final welterweight champion in the history of the now-defunct Strikeforce organization. He won the belt from Nate Marquardt in January 2013.

Saffiedine has earned nine of his past 10 UFC/Strikeforce victories by decision.

Mike Pyle and Sean Spencer

Mike Pyle (27-12-1 MMA, 10-7 UFC), 41, is the oldest active fighter in the UFC welterweight division. He’s also the oldest of the 22 fighters scheduled to compete at the event.

Pyle has earned 23 of his 27 career victories by stoppage.

Pyle has earned five of his past six UFC victories by knockout.

Pyle is the only welterweight in UFC history and one of 16 in company history overall to record three consecutive first-round knockout victories.

Pyle’s four third-round stoppage victories in UFC competition are third most in company history behind Randy Couture (six) and Yoel Romero (five).

Pyle has suffered 10 of his 12 career losses by stoppage. He has been finished in six of his seven UFC defeats.

Alex Garcia (13-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) has completed 19 takedowns in his past four UFC appearances.

Garcia completes 63.3 percent of his takedown attempts in UFC welterweight competition, the highest accuracy rate among active fighters in the weight class and fourth highest overall in divisional history.

Louis Smolka’s (11-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) 15 submission attempts in UFC flyweight competition are most in divisional history.

Smolka’s seven submission attempts against Ben Nguyen at UFC Fight Night 91 are the single-fight record for a UFC flyweight bout.

Smolka attempts 2.9 submission attempts per 15 minutes of fighting in UFC flyweight competition, the highest rate in divisional history.

Ray Borg’s (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) 10 submission attempts in UFC flyweight competition are tied for second most in divisional history behind Smolka (15).

Borg’s victory over Shane Howell at the 2:17 mark of Round 1 at UFC Fight Night 44 stands as the second fastest submission finish in UFC flyweight history.

Tim Means

Tim Means (26-7-1 MMA, 8-4 UFC) is 6-2 since he returned to the UFC for a second stint in May 2014.

Means has earned 22 of his 26 career victories by stoppage. That includes five of his eight UFC wins.

Alex Oliveira (15-3-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC) has earned 12 of his 15 career victories by stoppage.

Antonio Carlos Junior (6-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) is 2-1 with one no-contest since he dropped to the UFC middleweight division in June 2015.

Carlos Junior has earned five of his six career victories by submission.

Carlos Junior’s submission of Leonardo Augusto Leleco at 4:46 of Round 3 at UFC Fight Night 94 stands as the second latest finish in a three-round UFC middleweight fight. Garreth McLellen holds the record for his victory at 4:58 of Round 3 at UFC Fight Night 76.

Marvin Vettori (11-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC), 23, is the youngest of the 22 fighters scheduled to compete at the event.

Vettori has earned 10 of his 11 career victories by stoppage.

Brandon Thatch (11-4 MMA, 2-3 UFC) enters the event on a three-fight losing skid. He hasn’t earned a victory since November 2013.

Thatch has earned all 11 of his career victories by first-round stoppage.

Thatch has suffered all three of his UFC losses by submission.

For more on UFC 207, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

FightMetric research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on Twitter @MJCflipdascript.