LAS VEGAS – Carlos Prates beat Trevin Giles with a second-round knockout Saturday to close out the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 236 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
Take a look inside the fight with Prates, a Dana White’s Contender Series product who was making his official UFC debut.
Trevin Giles vs. Carlos Prates
Result: Carlos Prates def. Trevin Giles via knockout (punch) – Round 2, 4:03
Updated records: Prates (18-6 MMA, 1-0 UFC), Giles (16-6 MMA, 7-6 UFC)
Key stats: Giles nearly was doubling up on Prates in total strikes when the Brazilian landed the KO blow.
Prates on the fight's key moment
“My opponent was really good. He is really strong. I also have really strong hands, but I knew I would knock him out for the finish. When I finished the first round, I went back to my corner and talked with my coach and I said I think I lost the first round. They said, ‘Yeah, I think that’s true.’ And then my coach ask me what do (we have to worry about)? I said ‘Nothing – I’m going to knock him out right now.’ And we did it.”
Prates on making improvements
“I need to improve how to find the distance. I also want to get better on my grappling. I’m a BJJ black belt, but I want to now get better and better – every day, get 1 percent better.”
Prates on what he wants next
“I want to fight next at UFC Rio (in May). I just want to bring my mom to watch me live fighting in the UFC and make her happy fighting in my home (country). Now I want to fight in Brazil. It’s more about the location, I think. I think Santiago Ponzinibbio or Joaquim Buckley – guys like that would be amazing. They’re not top 15, I think, but they are good names to fight against.
“When I won my contract on Contender Series, I was leaving Vegas and going to Brazil and my manager said, ‘Hey, you want to fight in two weeks?’ And I said, ‘Against who?’ And he said Santiago Ponzinibbio because (Daniel Rodriguez) pulled out of the fight. They asked me to fight him, I think because I’m so powerful and his opponent was powerful, also, but I was a little bit injured and I was going back to Brazil, so I would have only two weeks to get a visa again and train and cut weight, so I didn’t accept the fight. (My manager said Ponzinibbio) was a little bit angry, so maybe that fight is good to us. We want to fight against him, and (if it’s) in Brazil, that would be awesome.”
To hear more from Prates, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 236.
