Klein vs Kropschot Preview: A Fast Finisher Meets a 79-Inch Reach

Nick Klein's average UFC fight is over in 5:11. Joseph Kropschot's, per ufc.com, goes 15:00. That gap in fight length frames everything about this middleweight matchup between two Americans at Meta APEX in Las Vegas on Saturday, Oct. 31. The UFC Fight Night card begins at 2 p.m. local time, with the main card at 5 p.m.

Klein, 30, goes by "Blue Collar," and his 6-3-0 record is built on finishes. Only one of his six wins went to the judges: three came by submission, two by knockout, and four ended inside the first round. Since his UFC debut in February 2025, he has averaged 1.93 submission attempts per 15 minutes. He stops 67% of the takedowns attempted against him. Of his significant strikes, 77% come at range, 23% in the clinch and none yet on the ground.

Kropschot, 31 and 1-0-0, is a different animal, though his numbers need a caveat: ufc.com lists his Octagon debut as this very card yet already shows UFC stats for him, so treat them as a small sample. By those figures, he does almost all of his work at range: 97% of his significant strikes have come at distance, 3% in the clinch and none on the ground. His output is high: 7.93 significant strikes landed per minute at 61% accuracy, roughly three times Klein's 2.51 (at 57%). He absorbs a little more, 3.93 per minute to Klein's 3.41, but avoids 63% of strikes compared with Klein's 40%, and he's logged 3.00 submission attempts per 15 minutes.

Size favors Kropschot as well. He's two inches taller at 6-foot-3, and his 79-inch reach beats Klein's 77. Neither man has a recorded knockdown yet. The one soft spot in Kropschot's listed numbers is takedown defense, just 50%.

So the key question is simple: can Klein drag Kropschot into his kind of fight and find a submission early, as his 5:11 average suggests he likes to, or will Kropschot keep it at range long enough for his reach to take over?

Klein's fights tend to end early, so don't show up late. The card opens at 2 p.m. Get your seat: tickets for UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas.