Carlos Prates warns Ilia Topuria, explains why the UFC superstar's potential welterweight move is a bad idea

Carlos Prates believes that Ilia Topuria potentially moving up to the welterweight division would be a bad idea for the UFC superstar. 

Topuria, who's regarded as one of the most popular athletes in MMA and beyond, previously competed at featherweight and currently fights in the lightweight division.

"El Matador" is a former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion, but many of his critics often argue that -- despite having held championship gold -- he's undersized for the lightweight division. 

Carlos Prates warns Ilia Topuria against plans for a potential move up to the UFC welterweight division

During a recent appearance on Canal Golpe Baixo, Carlos Prates addressed various topics, including the long-running speculation regarding Ilia Topuria's possible foray at welterweight. 

Topuria is coming off the first defeat of his professional MMA career, as he lost his UFC lightweight championship via fourth-round TKO to Justin Gaethje at UFC Freedom 250 in June. He expressed interest in a rematch against Gaethje, but the latter has maintained that he's unlikely to give the Georgian-Spaniard a rematch. 

Prior to the loss, Topuria was linked to a potential super-fight against former UFC lightweight kingpin and reigning UFC welterweight titleholder Islam Makhachev. Some speculated that he'd beat Gaethje and move up to welterweight to dethrone Makhachev. 

Carlos Prates alluded to the welterweight discussions surrounding Topuria and warned that it'd be a terrible move for the former two-division UFC champion. The Brazilian fighter appeared to allude to the significant size difference, in height and weight, between Topuria and some of the top welterweights like himself and Michael Morales. 

Prates stated, "He was going to die, man." He added, "Imagine him fighting me. Imagine him fighting (Michael) Morales." 

Insinuating that the size difference would factor into Topuria's durability as well, he claimed that the smaller fighter would get touched and go down against the elites of the welterweight division. Prates said, "Topuria can punch."

The KO artist noted, however, that there's a huge difference in size and power that the former featherweight would be unable to overcome in the heavier weight class. 

Watch Carlos Prates scoff at the possibility of Ilia Topuria's entry into the UFC welterweight division below: 

Carlos Prates is on the cusp of his maiden shot at UFC world championship gold

Carlos Prates stands at the No. 1 spot in the UFC welterweight division on the official Meta UFC rankings as of this time. He's fresh off a victory against former UFC welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena, whom he bested via TKO in May. 

Meanwhile, the No. 2-ranked Ian Machado Garry, who survived a near KO/TKO stoppage to previously outpoint Prates, is scheduled to fight for the title. Garry will take on Islam Makhachev for the UFC welterweight title in the headlining match of UFC 330 on August 15. 

Intriguingly, the No. 3-ranked Michael Morales is expected to weigh in as the official backup/replacement fighter for the Makhachev-Garry clash in case either of the headliners withdraw due to injury/other reasons. 

As such, some have conjectured that Morales could set himself up for the next title shot by weighing in for the backup role. Nevertheless, Prates has consistently suggested that he's been told that he'd face the Makhachev vs. Garry winner for the UFC welterweight belt, in what would mark his first UFC title shot.