Rising
Ultimate Fighting Championship talent Carlos
Prates has already earned a place on the marquee.
Per
MMA Fighting on Thursday, the promotion has pulled Prates
(20-6) from his welterweight pairing with Randy Brown
at UFC 309. Instead, the surging Brazilian will collide with
grizzled veteran Neil Magny
(29-12) in the main event of
UFC Fight Night 247, also known as UFC Vegas 100. An excited
Prates has since confirmed the
matchup on his Instagram page.
Fan-favorite Magny has alternated wins and losses in his last
eight, staving off tough outs Mike Malott
and Daniel
Rodriguez while coming up short to elite threats in the
division like Shavkat
Rakhmonov and Gilbert
Burns. Most recently, the 37-year-old saw his brief bit of
momentum from the Malott victory dry up when Michael
Morales punched him out in the first round. Magny, who now goes
by the nickname of “The Haitian Sensation,” holds a litany
of records at 170 pounds including the most appearances (33),
the most wins (22), the most triumphs on the scorecards (14) and
the most significant strikes landed (1,418).
Powerhouse Brazilian Prates has punched and kneed his ways into
hearts and minds by rattling off three straight knockouts since
joining the roster in February. A one-hitter quitter of Trevin
Giles led to a blistering knee that dispatched Charlie
Radtke, and “The Nightmare” rose to the occasion in August by
becoming the first fighter to stop Jingliang
Li with strikes. As a pro, the Fighting Nerds up-and-comer has
finished his opponent in 90% of his wins, and he rides a 10-fight
win streak—including nine by stoppage—into this main
attraction.
UFC Fight Night 247 will go down at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, with
Magny-Prates now on the books as its marquee bout. While the
remainder of the lineup has not yet been ordered, matchups expected
to take place on the main event include a gunslinger’s battle at
135 pounds between Cody
Garbrandt and Miles
Johns, a grappler’s delight at middleweight as Reinier
de Ridder takes on Gerald
Meerschaert and a collision at strawweight between Luana
Pinheiro and Gillian
Robertson.