Carlos Prates' nickname 'The Nightmare' did not originate from his fighting style as many assume. In the 2000s, a popular Brazilian children's show called 'Sítio do Picapau Amarelo' (Yellow Woodpecker Farm) featured a character named Pesadelo, which translates to 'Nightmare.' Prates' friends thought he resembled this character and gave him the nickname, which he later adopted for his fighting career. The post's author notes they see no actual resemblance between Prates and the character. Nevertheless, the childhood nickname has become perfectly suited to his aggressive fighting style and has carried over seamlessly into his professional MMA persona.
Long before he was stopping opponents in the UFC welterweight division, Carlos Prates was being compared to a cartoon character on Brazilian television. The story behind "The Nightmare" nickname has nothing to do with his fighting style — it traces back to a popular children's show that aired in Brazil in the 2000s.
The show, Sítio do Picapau Amarelo, which translates to Yellow Woodpecker Farm, featured a character named Pesadelo — Portuguese for "Nightmare." Friends of the young Prates thought he resembled the character and began calling him by the name. The nickname stuck, and Prates eventually carried it with him into his professional fighting career.
Prates, now 32, represents Vale Top Team and currently sits ranked fifth in the UFC welterweight division with a professional record of 24-7. Standing six-foot-one with a 78-inch reach, the Brazilian southpaw-turned-switch-hitter has built a reputation as one of the division's most dangerous strikers. His numbers back that up — he lands 3.77 significant strikes per minute at a striking accuracy of 55 percent, figures that place him among the more efficient and active strikers at 170 pounds.
Why it matters
- The origin of the nickname is a lighthearted contrast to Prates' aggressive, high-output striking style inside the octagon
- At ranked fifth in the welterweight division, Prates is positioned near title contention, making his personal story increasingly visible to a global audience
- The nickname, though born from a childhood television comparison, has taken on a life of its own as his UFC profile has grown
The person who shared the story noted they see no actual resemblance between Prates and the cartoon character. Regardless, few nicknames in recent MMA history have aged into their owner's persona quite so naturally.
