UFC fighters analyze Carlos Prates' devastating knee strikes

Multiple UFC fighters provided technical breakdowns of Carlos Prates' knee strike technique following his victory over Jack Della Maddalena. Cory Sandhagen highlighted that Prates' left knee was the game-changing attack, noting it wasn't a simple step-in knee but rather a spring-loaded technique generating enormous power that snapped Della Maddalena's head back. Sandhagen explained how Prates mixed the knee with high kicks, raising his knee as if for a strike but wrapping a high kick around his opponent's head, requiring unique technical adjustments against southpaws. Jorge Masvidal called it "some Mortal Kombat level" performance, praising how Prates covered distance with the knees and used the threat of them to shut down Della Maddalena's close-range boxing and body work. Masvidal noted this neutralized the clinch game entirely. Dean Thomas observed how Prates effectively mixed the knees with hand strikes making them harder to see, while Dustin Poirier credited the knees and elbows for opening up Della Maddalena's guard. Sandhagen also praised Prates' unique elbow technique that broke through Petr Yan-style blocking, a ripping type of elbow distinct from standard tomahawks.