A detailed tactical preview explores the key question in the Maddalena vs Prates welterweight bout: who will be forced to move backward. Prates has dropped opponents 11 times in the UFC while moving forward and relies on his powerful straight left, needing to advance to create space. Maddalena similarly builds his game on forward pressure and has rarely been seen retreating. The analysis suggests Maddalena's boxing defense style of blocking and slipping rather than footwork could be dangerous against Prates' power, citing how Trevin Giles dominated for 1.5 rounds before being knocked out cold. However, Maddalena holds advantages in short-range combination boxing and counterstriking, areas where Prates struggles when pressured to the cage. The breakdown references Ian Garry's success against Prates through precise distance management and reading the left hand, though noting Garry's physical advantages and versatility. The prediction favors Maddalena to force Prates backward, damage him with volume striking across multiple levels, and secure a stoppage or decision in rounds 3-4.
A detailed tactical breakdown circulating ahead of UFC Perth has zeroed in on a single defining question for the welterweight main event between Jack Della Maddalena and Carlos Prates: which man will be forced to move backward first.
Della Maddalena enters the fight ranked fourth in the welterweight division and 13th pound-for-pound, carrying an 18-4 record at 29 years old. The Perth-born product of Scrappy MMA lands an impressive 5.57 significant strikes per minute at 51 percent accuracy, and his game is built almost entirely around forward pressure and close-range combination boxing. The analysis highlights his ability to counter off the cage as a key weapon, while flagging his tendency to block and slip rather than use footwork as a potential vulnerability.
Prates, ranked fifth at welterweight, is a 32-year-old Brazilian fighting out of Vale Top Team with a 24-7 record. Known as The Nightmare, he owns a 78-inch reach advantage over Maddalena and lands at 55 percent accuracy. The breakdown credits him with 11 knockdowns inside the UFC, all generated while pressing forward behind a powerful straight left hand. That left is both his primary weapon and his calling card — but the analysis notes he struggles when pinned against the cage and his volume dips under pressure.
Why it matters
- Both men are top-five welterweights whose positioning in the division makes this effectively an eliminator fight
- The tactical puzzle centers on two forward-pressing switch-stances who cannot both dictate terms at once
- The breakdown references Trevin Giles as a cautionary tale for Maddalena, dominating for a round and a half before being finished, and cites Ian Garry's distance management as the template for defusing Prates' left hand
- Short-range volume striking and counterstriking along the fence are identified as Maddalena's clearest paths to a stoppage in rounds three or four
