Why Jack Della Maddalena beats Carlos Prates at UFC Perth

Jack Della Maddalena probably preferred his view from the Ultimate Fighting Championship penthouse, even if only lasted a little more than six months.

The former undisputed welterweight champion will take his first step toward reclaiming the 170-pound crown when he confronts Carlos Prates in the UFC Fight Night 275 headliner on Saturday at RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. Della Maddalena enters the Octagon as a slight underdog against the dangerous Vale Top Team- and Fighting Nerds-trained Brazilian. Even so, he appears to have multiple paths to victory ahead of his latest high-profile assignment. A look at three reasons why Della Maddalena beats Prates in the UFC’s first visit to Australia in almost three months:

Chin

Della Maddalena may bend, but he does not break. The 29-year-old crooked-nosed Aussie steps back into the spotlight having won 18 of his past 19 bouts—a ridiculous run of sustained success rarely seen at any level of mixed martial arts. Durability has been an essential spoke in the Della Maddalena wheel, as he has been stopped by strikes only once in his 21-fight career. That lone setback occurred in his pro debut more than a decade ago on March 12, 2016, when he was just 19 years old. Della Maddalena’s ability to take punishment has certainly served him well with in the UFC, where opponents have yet to be credited with a knockdown against him despite his having absorbed nearly 400 significant strikes across 23 rounds of hand-to-hand combat. Prates has relied heavily on finishes throughout his time in the sport, with 21 of his 23 victories having resulted in either a knockout or a submission. If “The Nightmare” wants to get past Della Maddalena, he probably needs all five rounds to do it.

Volume

Della Maddalena marches into the match at a two-inch disadvantage in height and five-inch deficit in reach. Nevertheless, most other metrics favor the Australian. Della Maddalena lands more often (5.57 significant strikes per minute to 3.77) and gets hit less often (3.84 significant strikes per minute to 4.53), all while connecting at virtually the same percentage as the explosive Brazilian. He has landed at least 80 significant strikes in four of his past five appearances, highlighted by a career-best 178 of them in his title-clinching unanimous decision over Belal Muhammad at UFC 315. By comparison, Prates has yet to land more than 63 significant strikes in a single fight since he joined the roster in 2024. Should he fail to secure a stoppage, odds seem to swing dramatically in Della Maddalena’s favor.

Support

Della Maddalena owns a 9-2 record over his 11 fights in his native Australia, having won nine straight since he started his career with back-to-back losses. He gets the benefit of a short drive to the venue, which seats in the neighborhood of 15,000 people, the vast majority of whom figure to be in his corner once the cage door closes behind him. Prates must confront an 8,500-mile, daylong flight with at least one layover to Australia, along with a treacherous weight cut and an 11-hour time difference.