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Carlos Prates and Leon Edwards. Image via: MMA Fighting
Carlos Prates walked into UFC 322 with confidence, but helium near Madison Square Garden with a career-changing knockout implicit erstwhile welterweight champion Leon Edwards. The Brazilian striker delivered the benignant of decorativeness that shifts the equilibrium of a division, handing Edwards the archetypal knockout nonaccomplishment of his vocation and extending the erstwhile champion’s skid to 3 consecutive defeats.
The infinitesimal landed with force, some successful the cage and successful the wider rubric picture, arsenic Prates reminded everyone that his powerfulness travels into heavy waters.
The matchup began with Edwards utilizing a astute but blimpish approach, leaning connected grappling and positioning to dilatory Prates’ pace. It worked for the archetypal round, but it came astatine the outgo of his ain momentum. When Round 2 began, Prates made a crisp adjustment, reclaimed halfway control, and past uncorked the cleanable consecutive near hand.
Edwards dropped instantly, and the referee stepped successful astatine 1:28 of the round, preventing further damage.
For Prates, it was different thunderous summation to a item reel that keeps growing.
Carlos Prates delivers the explosive decorativeness that defined UFC 322
The knockout marked the archetypal clip anyone had stopped Leon Edwards with strikes. Carlos Prates acceptable it up with dependable pressure, attacking the legs aboriginal and engaging successful tiny exchanges that forced Edwards to unfastened up. Once helium drew Edwards into striking range, the changeable came cleanable down the center.
The Brazilian had promised unit each week, and his postfight interrogation captured the mindset that powered the performance. “I deliberation I’m the astir entertaining feline successful the welterweight division,” Prates said. “I trained truthful overmuch for a combat against that guy. Leon Edwards is simply a f*cking legend. Maybe successful 1 hr I’ll travel backmost successful present for a faceoff with the champ.”Edwards had his moments early, particularly with backmost power precocious successful the archetypal round, but helium failed to crook that presumption into existent danger.
Prates brushed disconnected the grappling sequences, reset, and pushed the combat backmost into his preferred rhythm.
Leon Edwards faces a steep diminution arsenic Prates eyes UFC gold
The nonaccomplishment continues a worrying inclination for Edwards, who has present fallen to Belal Muhammad, Sean Brady, and Prates successful consecutive fights. The erstwhile champion looked tentative and incapable to transmission the crisp timing that erstwhile defined his tally astatine the top. At 34, the questions surrounding his adjacent measurement person intensified.Prates, meanwhile, has stacked back-to-back knockouts since his setback against Ian Machado Garry. With six KO wins since aboriginal 2024, helium has go 1 of the division’s astir unsafe finishers. Also Read: Cedric Irving Jr. pictured aft being accused of sidesplitting Netflix prima manager John Beam arsenic shocked member reacts
