Carlos Prates has become the fastest fighter in UFC history to achieve 7 knockout victories, doing so in just 8 fights. The previous record holders were Daniel Cormier and Cain Velasquez, both heavyweights who achieved it in 9 fights. Prates has also set the record for fastest to 14 knockdowns, accomplishing this in just 17 incomplete rounds, giving him the highest average knockdown rate per 15 minutes in UFC history. Additionally, he became the fastest to earn 7 Performance of the Night bonuses, needing only 8 fights compared to the average of 15. The post notes that only 62 out of 2,710 fighters who have competed in the UFC over 33 years have achieved 7 knockouts, representing just 2.29% of all fighters. The author suggests that if Islam Makhachev defeats Ian Garry and Prates, he would equal Jon Jones, and if he also beats Shavkat Rakhmonov, he would surpass Jones.
Carlos Prates has rewritten the UFC record books, cementing his place in finishing history with a seventh knockout in just eight UFC appearances.
The Brazilian welterweight has become the fastest fighter in UFC history to reach seven knockout victories, breaking a mark previously shared by heavyweight legends Daniel Cormier and Cain Velasquez, who each needed nine fights to hit that milestone. Prates also set the record for the fastest fighter to accumulate 14 knockdowns, doing so across just 17 incomplete rounds — a rate that gives him the highest average knockdown output per 15 minutes in UFC history. On top of that, he has earned seven Performance of the Night bonuses in only eight fights, a pace that dwarfs the UFC average of 15 fights to reach that same total. To put the knockout achievement in broader context, only 62 of the 2,710 fighters who have competed in the UFC across its 33-year history have ever reached seven knockouts — just 2.29 percent of all competitors.
The records arrive as Prates is mentioned in the same conversation as welterweight champion Islam Makhachev. Makhachev, 34, holds a 28-1 record, carries the welterweight title, and sits at the top of the pound-for-pound rankings. A southpaw out of Russia's Eagles MMA, he averages 3.2 takedowns per 15 minutes and posts a 58 percent striking accuracy. Reports suggest that if Makhachev were to defeat Ian Garry, Prates, and then Shavkat Rakhmonov, the chain of victories would first equal and then surpass Jon Jones's record in that particular measure of UFC greatness.
Rakhmonov, ranked third at welterweight, enters that picture undefeated at 19-0 out of Kazakhstan. The six-foot-four orthodox striker lands at a 60 percent accuracy clip and adds 1.4 takedowns per 15 minutes. Jones, for reference, carries a 28-1 record with a career-best 84-inch reach and 4.38 significant strikes landed per minute.
Why it matters
- Prates now holds three separate UFC finishing records simultaneously
- Only 2.29 percent of all UFC fighters in history have reached seven knockouts
- A potential Makhachev run through Garry, Prates, and Rakhmonov would reshape the welterweight division's all-time legacy conversation
