Brazilian striker Carlos Prates will make his UFC debut against Trevin Giles at UFC Vegas 86, after an extensive career in Muay Thai and kickboxing, and a period of considering leaving MMA.
Carlos Prates, the Brazilian striker, is all set for his UFC debut. He’s stepping into the octagon with Trevin Giles, a 12-time veteran, at UFC Vegas 86 this Saturday.
Prates nearly quit MMA over a decade ago. But now, he’s back in the game, stronger than ever.
He earned his UFC spot after knocking out Mitch Ramirez in the Contender Series back in August 2023. Prates, with a rich Muay Thai and kickboxing background, views his challenging journey as a testament to his destiny. He believes he’s meant to shine under the bright Vegas lights.
Prates once tried to leave MMA behind, focusing solely on kickboxing. He revealed this on the Trocação Franca podcast. But, MMA kept pulling him back. Now, he’s here, fighting for the world’s top MMA promotion.
He started training in Muay Thai at 15 in Sao Paulo with Vale Top Team. He’s still loyal to the same gym. Four years later, he made his MMA debut.
Prates kept switching between MMA and striking matches for a few years. After his fourth loss in nine MMA fights, he decided to move to Thailand. That’s when things got really interesting.
In Thailand, fighting was his only source of income. He had no sponsors, no other job. He had to fight to pay rent and buy food. He estimates he’s had around 102 or 103 fights, but he’s not sure how many were in Thailand or Brazil. He did fight more in Thailand, though, and also in China, Dubai, Russia.
There were times when he’d wake up, run in the morning, hit the gym, and then his coach would tell him to rest because he had a fight that night. He needed the money. He never knew when he might get injured and be unable to fight. So, he always fought.
Money was tight at first. The fight purses he received barely covered his rent and groceries. But things started to look up when he began fighting in China. The paychecks were six times larger. Life was slowly improving.
Living in Thailand felt like an endless vacation. Beautiful beaches, parties, and good training at Tiger Muay Thai and Phuket Fight Club. But eventually, Prates decided to return to Brazil.
After six years in Thailand, Prates now trains at VTT and Fighting Nerds. He’s experienced enough to ignore pre-fight jitters. He believes this gives him an edge over other UFC newcomers.
Giles has a 7-5 record in the UFC. He’s got three knockout victories and decisions over Roman Dolidze and James Krause.
Prates is looking forward to his UFC Vegas 86 matchup. He mentioned Giles, Santiago Ponzinibbio, and Joaquin Buckley as fighters he’d like to face in the UFC. He appreciates their fighting styles and believes they’ll allow him to showcase his game.