MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom goes in-depth to break down the biggest fights in the UFC. Today, he takes a closer look at UFC Fight Night 275's main event between Jack Della Maddalena vs. Carlos Prates.
Jack Della Maddalena UFC Fight Night 275 preview
Staple info:
• Record: 18-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC
• Height: 5'11" Age: 29 Weight: 170 lbs. Reach: 73.5"
• Last fight: Decision loss to Islam Makhachev (Nov. 15, 2025)
• Camp: Scrappy MMA (Australia)
• Stance/striking style: Switch-stance/kickboxing
• Risk management: Fair
Supplemental info:
• Former UFC welterweight champion
• Eternal welterweight title
• Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
• 12 KO victories
• 2 submission wins
• 8 first-round finishes
• KO power
• Aggressive pace and pressure
• Good eyes in exchanges
• ^ Deceptive defensive savvy
• Excellent combination puncher
• Seamlessly switches stances/levers punches
• Underrated kicks and knees
• Strong inside the clinch
• ^ Strikes well off of collar ties
• Crafty counter wrestling/scrambling
• ^ Works well from turtle position
• +/- 1-1 against UFC-level southpaws
Carlos Prates UFC Fight 275 preview
Staple info:
• Record: 23-7 MMA, 6-1 UFC
• Height: 6'1" Age: 32 Weight: 170 lbs. Reach: 78"
• Last fight: Knockout win over Leon Edwards (Nov. 5, 2025)
• Camp: Fighting Nerds (Brazil)
• Stance/striking style: Southpaw/muay Thai
• Risk management: Fair
Supplemental info:
• Regional MMA title
• Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt
• Multiple muay Thai and kickboxing titles
• 18 KO victories
• 3 submission wins
• 10 first-round finishes
• KO power
• Accurate shot selection
• ^ Good proprioception and eyes in exchanges
• Slick shoulder rolls and pivots
• Dangerous left crosses and kicks
• ^ Sneaky hand fighting and setups
• Solid takedown defense in the open and against the fence
• ^ Good grip awareness and frames
• Strong inside the clinch
• ^ Hard knees and elbows
• Good transitional grappler
• +/- 2-0 against UFC-level southpaws
Jack Della Maddalena vs. Carlos Prates point of interest: MMA's Hagler-Hearns?
The main event in Western Australia between Jack Della Maddalena and Carlos Prates might be the best stylistic parallel to Marvin Hagler vs. Thomas Hearns that MMA currently has to offer.
Hagler, who is one of my favorite boxers of all time, was a southpaw-primary switch-hitter who was as dynamic as he was flexible in his approach. And in April of 1985, Hagler was tasked with taking on super-welterweight champion Thomas Hearns, who was a long and lanky boxer-puncher with a death touch in tow.
In this case, Della Maddalena fits the bill for MMA’s Hagler (with all due respect to Dustin Poirier, of course).
A switch-hitter with knockout power in both hands, Della Maddalena makes for a tricky customer to trade with on the feet.
Not only can Della Maddalena competently fight from both stances, but the Australian fighter also possesses better defense than the structure of his nose would suggest.
Demonstrating excellent eyes in exchanges, Della Maddalena does a decent job of rolling with the punches while looking for his opportunities to intercept or return with vigor. And when Della Maddalena is feeling in stride, he's not shy about putting combinations together and levering left hands to the head and body.
Della Maddalena also has underrated kicks and knees, particularly from southpaw, that were on display in his title-winning effort opposite Belal Muhammad, but he will need to prove he can deal with those same threats coming back at him in this stylistic pairing.
Enter Prates.
Despite operating out of the opposite stance of the previously mentioned Hearns, Prates also has certified soul-stealing power that can pop any chin’s proverbial cherry.
A savvy southpaw who spent multiple years fighting in Thailand, Prates has an undeniable swagger to his striking style.
Defensively, Prates can cover himself fairly well with a high guard when he wants to, but he quietly gets a decent amount done with defensive pivots, shoulder rolls, and head movement.
Although I wish he were a little more active with his jab offensively, Prates does well at keeping the temperature high with lead-handed prods coming forward and check hook looks off the counter. And once Prates finds his range, the Brazilian wields the multi-level threat of crushing kicks and crosses in conjunction, providing solid examples of what many of us analysts refer to as the "southpaw double-attack."
Whether Prates is counter-balancing knees with straight shots or is utilizing crosses to disguise kicks off the same side, the lung-dart-loving 32-year-old can serve as a death dealer with multiple weapons at his disposal.
Prates is also an avid leg kicker who doesn't discriminate when it comes to picking his targets in open-stance affairs, as he isn’t beyond attacking the rear leg, a la Sittichai Sitsongpeenong.
Jack Della Maddalena vs. Carlos Prates point of interest: Clinch country
Although none of us expect to see much grappling or ground fighting in the main event this weekend, both Della Maddalena and Prates carry underrated closed-quarter combat skills that come to life in clinch spaces.
Not only can Prates operate well with the collar ties one would associate with a striker of his background, but he also displays solid wrestling fundamentals in defense.
Whether Prates hoisting his opponent's arms off of his hips with high and tight whizzers or is working off of solid forearm frames, the Fighting Nerds product demonstrates solid fight I.Q. when forced to defend takedowns along the fence. And in the open, Prates appears to have some deceptively strong hips that assist his already stellar reaction times when it comes to shutting down shots at his legs.
When taken down, Prates is good about keeping his composure while seeking out solutions that prioritize stand-ups and sweeps over submissions. Prates showed a glimpse of his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt savvy with a sweet butterfly sweep he hit against Charles Radtke – a tactic that could serve him well against an equally opportunistic opponent here.
Thankfully for Della Maddalena, he's a fluid and flexible fighter who appears comfortable working within multiple phases.
Aside from his knack for finding knees and elbows in closed quarters, Della Maddalena also likes to utilize judo-style foot sweeps and disruptions to create space for separations (when unable to find and fight grips, of course).
When taken down, Della Maddalena is typically quick to show off his scrambling chops by looking to get to his base and play from turtle.
An underrated and misunderstood guard to work from, Della Maddalena is surprisingly savvy when it comes to keeping the scrambles going in order to open up reversal opportunities. Della Maddalena shows solid defensive awareness in these scenarios, but will need to be mindful of the back and front-headlock exposure that turtling inherently opens.
Jack Della Maddalena vs. Carlos Prates odds
Despite the oddsmakers opening the Brazilian as the favorite, public money has pushed this closer to a pick’em price tag, listing Prates -122 and Della Maddalena -104 via FanDuel.
Jack Della Maddalena vs. Carlos Prates prediction, pick
Considering the amount of respect both fighters command, the betting spread above being basically even feels right to me. Heck, even the legendary boxing match that looms over this matchup, Hagler vs. Hearns, also got bet down to pick’em odds come fight week. But the parallels don’t end there.
In fact, I believe that the dynamic in Hagler-Hearns holds true in this fight as well – at least for Della Maddalena’s sake.
A shorter man who was outgunned at range, Hagler abandoned traditional entry weapons like the jab in favor of stance-shifting salvos that came off strategic blitzes. And though Della Maddalena, akin to Hagler, has the ability to compete and counter from the outside, I suspect that crowding the power-punching perfectionist in Prates will serve the former champ well on paper.
The potential problem, however, is that Prates – unlike Hearns – will have everything from kicks, knees and elbows to help dissuade the pressure coming his way. Prates is also good at protecting himself with a shelling shoulder-roll variation, which I think could bode well for him, considering the quiet success Kevin Holland had with similar defensive choices opposite Della Maddalena.
Cage positioning and directionality will be paramount for the Della Maddalena side of the equation, while Prates’ defensive pivots and positional striking will have plenty of play in the large octagon. Sure, Prates may have been semi-recently outfoxed for the better part of five rounds opposite a superior positional striker and certified southpaw killer in Ian Garry, but Della Maddalena, for all his awesomeness, does not offer the same semblance of point-scoring sensibilities that Garry brings to the table.
Moreover, when facing UFC-level southpaws, Della Maddalena has shown a propensity to strike off of stance-matching scenarios, which could be problematic against a striker like Prates.
In his last outing opposite Islam Makhachev, we saw that Della Maddalena’s boxing-centric stylings can offer some tangible targets when facing fighters with more than competent kicking abilities. Not only does Prates offer the leg assaults that you’d associate with his muay Thai background, but the Brazilian’s striking traditionally blossoms when facing fellow southpaws.
In fact, despite Della Maddalena’s firm place as one of my favorite body punchers in MMA, I suspect that Prates will be the first fighter who can offer the Aussie a taste of his own medicine in that department. Although I stand by my statement that Della Maddalena will need to follow Hagler’s blueprint for success, there are too many potent two-way streets to be confident in a forecast either way.
That said, if forced to make a pick, I’ll take “The Hitman” side of this equation to win MMA’s version of Hagler-Hearns. The official prediction is for a Prates body shot to spark off a stoppage via strikes by Round 3.
Prediction: Prates inside the distance
Jack Della Maddalena vs. Carlos Prates start time, how to watch
As the main event, Della Maddalena and Prates are expected to make their walks to the octagon at approximately 9:35 a.m. ET. The fight streams on Paramount+.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Jack Della Maddalena vs. Carlos Prates pick, odds, time: UFC Perth
