Carlos Prates has responded to Islam Makhachev showing interest in fighting him, making it clear he doesn’t see himself as an easy matchup for the pound-for-pound standout.
Prates, who owns a 24-7 MMA record and a 7-1 mark in the UFC, is coming off a bonus-winning knockout of former champion Jack Della Maddalena at UFC Fight Night 275. The streaking welterweight has earned bonus-winning knockouts in his past three fights and currently sits at No. 4 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie welterweight rankings.
Addressing Makhachev’s comments, Prates said, "Bro, I think he said that just because he just thinks that I'm an easier fight than Ian Garry," before adding, "Not easier, but less hard because maybe Ian beat me. Leon Edwards took me down, (Della Maddalena) took me down, Ian Garry took me down one time."
Prates pushed back on the idea that takedowns tell the whole story. "Maybe he thinks it's going to be easy. But, when I fought these guys, I even didn't care about takedowns. When JDM took me down, he tried to take me down, I didn't even try to defend. I just opened my arms and smiled like, 'What the f*ck is this guy doing?'"
"Of course Islam is a very good grappler, but when I fought Ian, Leon, and JDM, I knew – bro, I'm a BJJ black belt," Prates said, noting he has not been submitted since 2014. "I'm good on the ground also. So, I know these guys aren't going to finish me. Like I said, Makhachev is really good at grappling, but until now, everybody who took me down, I got up. Until I know, he's not from another planet. He's human like us so, let's see if when he takes me down, I cannot get up."
