Tomorrow night the UFC will host their 100th Fight Night from The APEX in Las Vegas and in the main event, one of the most exciting prospects in the welterweight division will get his chance to break into the rankings. Fifteenth ranked Neil Magny (29-12) will taking on surging top prospect Carlos Prates (20-6).
Starting with The Haitian Sensation, Neil Magny is becoming known as the ultimate gate keeper of the welterweight division. Magny holds the most wins in the history of the welterweight division and he’s become the guy who is the ultimate litmus test for top welterweight prospects.
Magny is 1-2 in his last three fights. His lone win came against Mike Malott when he derailed that hype train by stopping Malott in the final round of their fight. Prior to that, he lost to Ian Garry. In his last fight, he was tasked with taking on top prospect Michael Morales and he was stopped in the first round.
Now, he’ll take on another dangerous prospect in Carlos Prates. Prates was introduced to UFC fans via The Contender Series last year. With a second round knockout, Prates earned a contract with the promotion. Since earning that contract, Prates is 3-0 with three knockouts. Most impressively, he knocked out the incredibly durable Li Jingliang.
UFC Vegas 100 Prediction
Neil Magny has more wins in the welterweight division than anyone in UFC history. With a promotional record like that, you’d expect the odds to potentially be a little closer. However, he’s a massive betting underdog and honestly, I think the odds are about right in this matchup.
Magny really has one path to victory in this fight. That path is through his wrestling and cardio. His only chance of winning is if he’s able to get Prates to the ground and if he’s able to survive an early storm while hoping that Prates gasses out. However, I don’t think the fight is going to last that long.
Call me a believer of hype, but I think Carlos Prates runs through Neil Magny tomorrow night. I just think the power and precision will be too much and I’ll be surprised if Magny gets out of the first round at UFC Vegas 100.
Prediction: Carlos Prates by TKO