Carlos Prates Reveals Definitive Take on Islam Makhachev Matchup

Carlos Prates vs. Islam Makhachev has been a heavily proposed matchup. Since Makhachev defeated Ian Garry to retain his welterweight belt, the noise around him taking on the Brazilian grew louder. However, there were some doubts about whether the UFC would give the title shot to someone else in the division. 

According to a latest update from Prates, he is locked in on his fight against the Dagestani legend. Having created quite a hype with his fearsome striking, the Brazilian has been touted as a difficult matchup for Makhachev. In a recent interaction with N3ON, the UFC welterweight fighter also dropped a possible timeline for the much-anticipated fight. 

Prates said, “Yea . I don't know when, but I will. I wish it's in Vegas in December, but I don't think so. Maybe January, something like that."

Such a statement surely clears the air on who Makhachev will face next. Previously, there were a lot of questions about whether Michael Morales or even Shavkat Rakhmonov would make the cut ahead of Prates. 

Why Carlos Prates vs. Islam Makhachev makes Perfect Sense

For a long time now, Prates has been knocking on the door. Knocking out some dangerous opponents, the Brazilian has proved that he's ready to take on the big guns. On the contrary, Makhachev has already won against Jack Della Maddalena and Ian Garry. Thus, if he can put over Prates, there will be no doubt that the Dagestani’s fighting skills are a notch above. 

Now, despite Morales having a good resume of his own, the UFC might want to wait a bit before handing him a title bout.  As for Rakhmonov, his injury struggles have pegged him back significantly.

When he comes back after a long layoff, it will not be ideal to pit him against Makhachev. Additionally, the timeline proposed by Prates perfectly aligns with Makhachev’s aim of fighting one more time before Ramadan.