UFC on ESPN 21 pre-event facts: Marion Reneau now oldest active UFC fighter

Derek Brunson

Brunson competes in his fifth UFC main event. He’s 2-2 in previous headliners.

Brunson’s 12 victories since 2012 in UFC middleweight competition are the most in the division.

Brunson’s eight stoppage victories in UFC middleweight competition are tied for fourth most in divisional history behind Anderson Silva (11), Nate Marquardt (nine) and Chris Leben (nine).

Brunson’s seven knockout victories in UFC middleweight competition are tied for third most in divisional history behind Silva (eight) and Thiago Santos (eight).

Brunson’s seven first-round stoppage victories in UFC middleweight competition are most in divisional history.

Brunson is one of five fighters in modern UFC history to register both a knockout and submission victory in less than one minute each. Joe Lauzon, Ronda Rousey, Tom Lawlor and Andrei Arlovski also accomplished the feat.

Kevin Holland

Holland’s five-fight UFC winning streak at middleweight is the second longest active streak in the division behind Israel Adesanya (nine).

Holland has earned 17 of his 21 career victories by stoppage.

Holland is one of three fighters in UFC history to 5-0 in a calendar year. Roger Huerta (2007) and Neil Magny (2014) also accomplished the feat, but Holland did it the fastest at 210 days.

Holland lands 60.5 percent of his significant strike attempts in UFC middleweight competition, the best rate in divisional history.

Gregor Gillespie

Gregor Gillespie (13-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) returns to competition for the first time since Nov. 2, 2019. The 504-day layoff is the longest of his more than seven-year career.

Gillespie has earned 11 of his 13 career victories by stoppage. That includes five of his six UFC wins.

Gillespie has been controlled by his opponent on the ground for just eight seconds in UFC lightweight competition, the least amount of time for anyone with five fights in divisional history.

Brad Riddell (9-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) has earned all three of his UFC victories by decision.

Tai Tuivasa

Tai Tuivasa (11-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC) has earned 10 of his 11 career victories by first-round stoppage. That includes all three of his UFC wins.

Tuivasa is one of two heavyweights in UFC history to earn a knockout stemming from a flying knee. Fabricio Werdum also accomplished the feat.

Tuivasa is one of four heavyweights in UFC history to earn knockouts stemming from a knee and an elbow strike. Alistair Overeem, Cheick Kongo and Justin Willis also accomplished the feat.

Marion Reneau

Marion Reneau (9-6-1 MMA, 5-5-1 UFC), 43, is the oldest fighter scheduled to compete at the event. She’s also the oldest fighter on the UFC roster.

Reneau’s three-fight losing skid is the longest of her career. She hasn’t earned a victory since February 2018.

Reneau competes in her 12th UFC women’s bantamweight bout, tied for the second most appearances in divisional history behind Raquel Pennington (13).

Reneau, at 40, became the oldest female fighter to earn a UFC victory when she defeated Sara McMann at UFC on FOX 28.

Reneau’s four stoppage victories in UFC women’s bantamweight competition are tied for third most in divisional history behind Amanda Nunes (eight) and Ronda Rousey (six).

Reneau’s two submission victories in UFC women’s bantamweight competition are tied for second most in divisional history behind Rousey (three).

Reneau’s victory at the 4:54 mark of Round 3 at UFC Fight Night 115 is the second latest stoppage in a UFC women’s bantamweight fight behind Lauren Murphy’s win at UFC Fight Night 83 (4:55, Round 3).

Reneau fought to the first draw in a women’s UFC fight when she met Bethe Correia at UFC Fight Night 106.

Leonardo Santos

Leonardo Santos (18-3-1 MMA, 7-0-1 UFC) enters the event on a 13-fight unbeaten streak. He hasn’t suffered a defeat since May 2009.

Santos’ eight-fight unbeaten streak in UFC lightweight competition is tied with Charles Oliveira for the longest active streak in the division.

Santos defends 95.5 percent of all opponent takedown attempts in UFC lightweight competition, the highest rate in divisional history.

Grant Dawson (16-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) returns to the lightweight division for the first time since July 2016.

Trevin Giles

Trevin Giles (13-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC) is 3-2 since he dropped to the UFC middleweight division in December 2017.

Giles has earned 11 of his 13 career victories by stoppage. All of his UFC finishes are by knockout.

Roman Dolidze (8-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) drops to the middleweight division. He started his career at heavyweight then went 7-0 at light heavyweight.

Montel Jackson

Montel Jackson (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) lands 59.6 percent of his significant strike attempts in UFC bantamweight competition, the highest rate in divisional history.

Jackson absorbs 1.28 significant strike attempts in UFC bantamweight competition, the best rate in divisional history.

Jackson completes 75 percent of his takedown attempts in UFC bantamweight competition, the highest rate in divisional history.

Julia Avila

Julia Avila’s (8-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) 22-second victory at UFC on ESPN 10 is the fourth fastest finish in UFC women’s bantamweight history. Only Ronda Rousey (14 seconds, 16 seconds) and Germaine de Randamie (16 seconds) have faster wins.

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