Carlos Prates Eyes Late Makhachev Knockout

Carlos Prates is not presenting a potential fight with Islam Makhachev as an easy assignment. Instead, Prates says he expects to be put under severe pressure early before finding the opening he believes could change the contest. Speaking with UFC veteran Gilbert Burns, Prates described a late-fight knockout vision for a matchup that remains under discussion with the promotion. The Brazilian said he sees a difficult beginning against Makhachev, whose title defense against Ian Machado Garry came earlier this month. But Carlos Prates believes surviving that first phase, getting back to his feet and beginning to land damaging strikes would give him the chance to finish the champion in the later rounds.

Carlos Prates framed the possibility through his comparison to Anderson Silva’s championship rematch with Chael Sonnen in 2012. The comparison was not a prediction of an identical fight; it was Prates’ way of explaining the kind of adversity he expects to overcome. He pointed to Sonnen getting mount in the first round before Silva knocked him out in the second, then applied that comeback image to his own proposed meeting with Makhachev. “I think I’m going to start by getting smashed,” Carlos Prates said. “And the first time I manage to get back to my feet and start hurting him, I’m going to knock him out somewhere around the fourth or fifth round.” The statement gives the matchup a clear tactical storyline from Prates’ perspective: early survival against wrestling pressure, followed by an attempt to turn the fight into a striking exchange on his terms.

Carlos Prates sees a route through pressure

The notable part of Carlos Prates’ assessment is that he did not dismiss Makhachev’s grappling threat. He openly said he expects to be “smashed” at the start, making his confidence contingent on recovery rather than on avoiding difficult positions altogether. That is a specific claim about how he imagines the fight unfolding, not confirmation that the bout has been booked or that its result is known. Carlos Prates said watching Garry’s wrestling exchanges with Makhachev made him more confident. In particular, he referred to positions involving the back against the cage and said he uses a standing response in his own fights. He also said Garry getting Makhachev off his back showed him that such escapes were possible. Prates’ confidence, therefore, rests on what he believes he recognized in that title fight and on the training time he expects would be available.

That explanation matters because Carlos Prates is describing more than a general belief in his power. His prediction depends on a sequence: endure the early grappling exchanges, regain his feet, hurt Makhachev with his hands and then capitalize late. The fourth- or fifth-round finish is Carlos Prates’ forecast, not a reported UFC plan. His UFC results supply context for why he is willing to make a knockout prediction. Carlos Prates has lost only once in the UFC, a decision to Garry in April 2025. Every other UFC fight listed in the supplied report ended in a Carlos Prates knockout. His most recent appearances included stoppages of former champions Jack Della Maddalena and Leon Edwards. Those results do not settle how a fight with Makhachev would play out, but they explain the finishing identity Carlos Prates is bringing into the discussion.

Carlos Prates discusses possible timing

Carlos Prates said he is currently discussing a date with the promotion for a fight with Makhachev. He said headlining UFC 335 on Dec. 12 in Las Vegas “would be perfect.” According to Carlos Prates, UFC officials also told him that January in Australia was another possibility. Neither option should be treated as a finalized booking from the information available. The meaningful update is that Carlos Prates identified two possible windows while also making clear that talks were still taking place. For readers following the welterweight picture, that distinction separates an expressed preference from an announced event or signed matchup. Carlos Prates’ comments also connect the timing question to preparation. He said that after watching Garry defend positions he recognizes from his own game, he thought about “the amount of time we have to train.” That does not establish a camp schedule, but it shows why Carlos Prates views the prospective time frame as part of his confidence in preparing for Makhachev.

• Carlos Prates expects the opening stages to feature sustained pressure and wrestling danger from Makhachev.
• Carlos Prates believes a return to his feet and successful striking could create a knockout opportunity in the fourth or fifth round.

Carlos Prates has laid out a confident but conditional picture of a possible Makhachev fight: weather the early storm, create space to strike and seek a late finish. His comments add detail to ongoing date discussions without confirming a booking. For now, the clearest development is Carlos Prates’ willingness to predict adversity first and a knockout second.