An analysis examines the central question of the Maddalena versus Prates fight: will there be a head-on collision in the center, and if not, who will retreat. Prates has dropped opponents 11 times in the UFC while moving forward and rarely backs up. Maddalena similarly builds his game on forward pressure. The analyst notes Maddalena absorbed over 50 clean straight punches against Belal Muhammad, while Prates needs only one to finish fights. However, Maddalena has advantages in short combination boxing and counter-punching, areas where Prates struggles when pressured. The piece explains that Ian Garry succeeded by feeling Prates' left straight on millimeters and having superior size, speed, and leg kicks. Maddalena will rely more heavily on boxing but hits harder than Garry and can force Prates backward. Despite the puzzle-like nature of the matchup, the analyst picks Maddalena, predicting he'll force Prates to retreat and win by decision or TKO in rounds 3-4.
