Carlos Prates revealed details of a conversation that took place during a takedown exchange with Jack Della Maddalena. According to Prates, when Della Maddalena attempted to take the fight to the ground, Prates taunted him by asking if he had become a grappler or wrestler. Della Maddalena responded that he is well-rounded and versatile. Prates then told him he was scared and afraid of standing with him. Prates believes this exchange demonstrates that he successfully got inside Della Maddalena's head during their fight.
Carlos Prates has opened up about a mid-fight verbal exchange with Jack Della Maddalena, claiming the Australian showed signs of mental vulnerability during their welterweight bout.
Prates, known as "The Nightmare," said that when Della Maddalena attempted to take the fight to the ground, he challenged him on it, asking whether he had turned into a grappler or a wrestler. Della Maddalena reportedly answered that he is well-rounded and versatile. Prates shot back, telling him he was scared to stand and trade. The Brazilian believes the exchange reveals he had successfully gotten inside his opponent's head.
Prates carries a 24-7 record and sits fifth in the welterweight rankings at 32 years old. Fighting out of Vale Top Team, the six-foot-one Brazilian has a 78-inch reach and posts a striking accuracy of 55 percent, landing 3.77 significant strikes per minute. Those numbers point to a fighter who prioritizes precision on the feet.
Della Maddalena enters the conversation as the fourth-ranked welterweight and sits thirteenth in the pound-for-pound standings. The 29-year-old Australian, who trains at Scrappy MMA, stands five-foot-eleven with a 73-inch reach. He lands an eye-catching 5.57 significant strikes per minute at 51 percent accuracy, and his takedown rate of just 0.13 per fifteen minutes underlines that striking remains the foundation of his game.
Why it matters
- Prates is claiming a psychological edge over a fighter ranked directly above him at welterweight
- Della Maddalena's low takedown and submission rates support Prates's suggestion that the grappling attempts were out of character
- The verbal back-and-forth adds a personal dimension to what is already a high-stakes divisional rivalry between two switch-stance strikers
