Carlos Prates has achieved unprecedented knockout statistics in UFC history, setting multiple records in just eight fights. He became the fastest fighter ever to record seven knockout victories in the UFC, surpassing even heavyweights like Daniel Cormier and Cain Velasquez who needed nine fights. Only 2.29% of all UFC fighters (62 out of 2,710) have ever achieved seven knockouts total. Prates also set the record for fastest to 14 knockdowns, accomplishing this in just 17 incomplete rounds, and has the highest average knockdown rate per 15 minutes of fight time in UFC history. Additionally, he earned seven Performance of the Night bonuses in just eight fights, nearly twice as fast as the historical average of 15 fights. The post notes that Prates consecutively knocked out two former UFC champions who had never been knocked out before, and suggests that if Islam Makhachev can defeat both Ian Garry and Prates (and potentially Shavkat Rakhmonov), he would rival or surpass Jon Jones's legacy.
Carlos Prates has rewritten the UFC record books, cementing his place in promotional history across multiple knockout-related categories after just eight fights inside the Octagon.
The Brazilian welterweight needed only eight bouts to become the fastest fighter ever to record seven knockout victories in UFC history, a pace that outstrips even former heavyweight champions Daniel Cormier and Cain Velasquez, who each required nine fights to reach that benchmark. The achievement places Prates in extraordinarily rare company — only 62 of the 2,710 fighters in UFC history, roughly 2.29 percent, have ever reached seven knockouts at any point in their careers.
His record-setting does not stop there. Prates also holds the mark for the fastest accumulation of 14 knockdowns, reaching that total across just 17 incomplete rounds, and carries the highest average knockdown rate per 15 minutes in UFC history. In terms of bonuses, he has earned seven Performance of the Night awards in eight appearances, a rate nearly twice as fast as the historical average of 15 fights. Among his eight victories, Prates consecutively stopped two former UFC champions who had never previously been knocked out.
Why it matters
- Prates has separated himself from virtually every knockout artist in UFC history regardless of weight class, achieving milestones at a pace heavyweights could not match.
- His record at welterweight adds pressure to champion Islam Makhachev, who holds a 28-1 record and currently ranks as the pound-for-pound number one fighter. Makhachev faces the welterweight division with challengers including Ian Garry, Prates, and the undefeated Shavkat Rakhmonov — ranked third at 19-0 with a six-foot-four frame and 77-inch reach — all potentially in his path.
- How Makhachev navigates that gauntlet is being measured against the legacy of Jon Jones, whose 28-1 record and generational dominance set the standard by which modern champions are judged.
