The climb up the Ultimate Fighting Championship lightweight division has grown increasingly steep for Mark O. Madsen.
Madsen will put his perfect 11-0 record on the line when he meets “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 15 semifinalist Vinc Pichel as part of the UFC 273 undercard on April 9 at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. The undefeated Dane has turned away three opponents inside the Octagon since he joined the UFC roster in 2019. Madsen last fought at UFC on ESPN 29, where he eked out a split decision over former Strikeforce champion Clay Guida on Aug. 21. Pichel, meanwhile, enters the cage on the strength of a three-fight winning streak. The Factory X export has not tasted defeat since he submitted to a Gregor Gillespie arm-triangle choke at UFC Fight Night 131 on June 1, 2018.
As Madsen and Pichel move ever closer to their three-round confrontation at 155 pounds, a look at some of the numbers that have accompanied them to this point:
37: Years of age for Madsen, who was born on Sept. 23, 1984 in Nykobing Falster, Denmark.
3: Madsen wins by submission, accounting for 27% of his career total (11). His methods of choice: two guillotine chokes and one rear-naked choke. Madsen owns three other wins by knockout or technical knockout and five more by decision.
26: Seconds needed for Madsen to put Matthias Freyschuss to sleep with a guillotine choke at an MMA Galla show in January 2018. Having occurred more than four years ago, it remains the fastest finish of his 11-fight career.
1: Olympic appearance for Madsen. He won silver in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro. Madsen lost to two-time Olympic champion Roman Vlasov in the 75-kilogram final.
6: Promotions in which Madsen has competed as a mixed martial artist. He has gone 3-0 in the UFC, 3-0 in Cage Warriors Fighting Championship, 2-0 in European MMA, 1-0 in Olympian Fight Night, 1-0 in Danish MMA Night and 1-0 in MMA Gala.
39: Years of age for Pichel, who was born in Lancaster, California, on Nov. 23, 1982.
8: Pichel victories by knockout or technical knockout, accounting for 57% of his career total (14). However, only one of them took place inside the Octagon. Pichel punched out Damien Brown in the first round of their UFC Fight Night 110 pairing on June 10, 2017. He holds six other victories by decision.
5: UFC assignments in which Pichel has surrendered multiple takedowns. He carries a 3-2 record in those bouts, his wins over Hubbard, Jim Miller and Roosevelt Roberts offset by losses to Gillespie and Rustam Khabilov.
26: Professional rounds completed by Pichel as a mixed martial artist. He has won all six fights in which he has gone the distance.
.884: Cumulative winning percentage between the two men—Gillespie and Khabilov—who have defeated Pichel. They boast a combined record of 38-5.
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