Carlos Prates knocks out Jack Della Maddalena in third round at UFC Perth

Carlos Prates delivered a third-round knockout of Jack Della Maddalena at UFC Perth on May 2, 2026, in a result that reshapes the landscape of the welterweight division.

Prates, known as "The Nightmare," entered the fight ranked fifth at welterweight and improved his professional record to 24-7-0 with the finish. The 32-year-old Brazilian, who trains out of Vale Top Team, stands six-foot-one with a lengthy 78-inch reach and fights out of a switch stance. He lands 3.77 significant strikes per minute at a 55 percent accuracy rate, a mark that reflects a precise, measured approach to offense.

Della Maddalena came in as the fourth-ranked welterweight and the 13th-ranked fighter on the pound-for-pound list, carrying an 18-4-0 record into what was expected to be a defining night for the 29-year-old Australian. Fighting out of Scrappy MMA in Perth, he brought one of the division's more active striking games, averaging 5.57 significant strikes per minute at 51 percent accuracy. The hometown crowd had every reason to expect a strong performance from the switch-stance fighter, who stands five-foot-eleven with a 73-inch reach.

Why it matters

• Prates jumps over Della Maddalena in the welterweight rankings after a direct win, positioning himself firmly inside the top five.
• Della Maddalena drops from fourth at welterweight and 13th pound-for-pound, likely requiring a rebound fight before returning to title contention.
• The reach and timing advantage Prates carries — a 78-inch reach against Della Maddalena's 73 inches — may have played a role in how the finish unfolded in the third round.
• A Brazilian finishing a top-five opponent on Australian soil adds stakes to Prates' contender claim heading into the next title cycle.