Carlos Prates praises Maurício Ruffy when recalling training sessions at Fighting Nerds: 'He used to beat me up a lot'

Ruffy and Prates backstage at the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/Facebook/UFC

PUBLICITY:

Despite no longer being training partners at Fighting Nerds, Carlos Prates ' respect and admiration for Maurício Ruffy remains intact. Ranked first in the welterweight division (up to 77,1 kg) and highly regarded as a challenger for the world title in Islam Makhachev , the São Paulo native revealed that he had a tough time training with the Sergipe native. He spoke about the matter in an interview with Ag. Fight.

According to the fighter, the lightweight's (up to 70,3 kg) technique during sparring sessions was so superior that it overcame the size difference between the two. A natural knockout artist, Ruffy stands out for his precision and fluidity in striking exchanges on his feet.

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"Luffy used to hit me a lot, way too much, it's crazy. I'd raise my guard and his hands would just pierce through my defense. Luffy is just that good," he stated.

👀🇧🇷 Carlos Prates revealed that Mauricio Ruffy used to beat him up a lot in training at Fighting Nerds.

“Ruffy used to beat me up a lot, too much it's crazy. I put up my guard and his hands passed my defense. Ruffy is just that good.”

😳 Carlos Prates is a welterweight and… pic.twitter.com/v6UFFk2HN1

— Home of Fight (@Home_of_Fight) August 20, 2026

After becoming popular as a representative of Fighting Nerds in the lightweight division (up to 70,3 kg), Ruffy chose to leave the academy in May of this year, moving to train in Australia with the featherweight champion (up to 65,7 kg), Alexander Volkanovski . Despite the situation, everyone involved made it clear that there was no disagreement between the fighter and his former training partners.

Maurício Ruffy and Carlos Prtes have big challenges ahead.

Islam Makhachev and Carlos Prates are set to face off for the welterweight title. Photo: SUPER LUTAS montage.

PUBLICITY:

Seen as two promising prospects in their respective divisions, both Prates and Ruffy will face very important challenges in their upcoming matches. Although nothing has been officially confirmed, the player from São Paulo is the leading candidate to face them. Islam makhachev in the Russian's next title defense, scheduled to take place in the next six months. Meanwhile, the fighter from Sergipe faces... Arman Tsarukyan no dia 19 de setembro, como parte do card do UFC 331. Em caso de vitória, ele provavelmente se tornará o desafiante número um do título em posse de Justin gaethje.

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