A detailed breakdown of Jack Della Maddalena's loss to Carlos Prates identifies several tactical issues. Maddalena relied approximately 90% on boxing guard defense, which proved inadequate against Prates' diverse striking arsenal of kicks, elbows, knees and punches. The guard was porous and allowed many straight punches through. Unlike Petr Yan who can counter from a guard position, Maddalena could not generate explosive counters and fought at a rhythm unsuited to his style. Surprisingly, Maddalena spent considerable time in southpaw stance despite his left leg being damaged in the Makhachev fight, when he needed more orthodox stance preparation. When he did switch to orthodox, Prates damaged his entire left side with mid-kicks. Maddalena's long-range work was insufficient, his kicks slow and weak. His chance required aggressive pressure and keeping Prates against the cage, which failed due to lack of speed, caution after taking a knee, and Prates' exceptional confidence and multi-angled striking. The analysis concludes that regardless of preparation, Prates would have won due to his momentum, belief, and universal striking ability.
