The manager of UFC welterweight star Carlos Prates claims that the UFC is upset with Islam Makhachev for withdrawing from UFC 336.
Makhachev and Prates were set to headline UFC 336 for the undisputed UFC welterweight title, but Makhachev refused to fight on that date, which led to the creation of an interim title fight between Prates and Michael Morales.
But it’s clear that the UFC is not happy with Makhachev going back on his word, which is understandable, as he verbally agreed to fight Prates at UFC 336.
UFC Upset With Islam Makhachev
Speaking to MMAFighting.com, Prates’s manager Lucas Lutkus said that the UFC is upset with Makhachev for refusing to fight Prates at UFC 336.
“The UFC called me last Tuesday and said, ‘Islam is out.’ I asked if it was an injury, and they said Islam hadn’t given them a reason. He had only said he wouldn’t be ready for January, and they weren’t going to break their promise that Carlos’ next fight would be for the title, so they would have Carlos fight Morales for the belt,” Lutkus said.
“I don’t think even the UFC really knows what happened, because Islam comes out of the fight with Ian Garry, takes the microphone, and says, ‘I’m going to fight before Ramadan.’ His coaches say Prates is the most deserving contender, too. There was even a quick encounter backstage after the fight in Philadelphia, and everything was understood.
“This talk from Islam about there being so many contenders doesn’t hold up. He might be saying that now, but he’s changing his tune from what he said right after the fight in Philadelphia. He always said Carlos deserved it and that Morales wasn’t fighting. Anyway, something made him change his mind. I’m not naive enough to think Islam Makhachev is afraid to fight Carlos Prates, but something made him change his mind. And as far as I know, he hasn’t explained it to the UFC. The UFC doesn’t know either, and that’s why they were a little upset with Islam. ‘He kept telling us he was going to do this the whole time, and now, with three months to go, he’s backing out of what we agreed on.’”
Carlos Prates Got New UFC Contract
According to Lutkus, Prates got a new UFC contract that makes him the second- or third-highest-paid Brazilian MMA fighter in the sport today, behind only Alex Pereira and on par with Charles Oliveira.
“We’re very satisfied. I don’t know what the other fighters are making, but based on what we’ve been able to find out, it’s entirely possible that Prates really is the second-highest-paid Brazilian fighter in the UFC, behind only ‘Poatan.’ I don’t know how much Charles (Oliveira) makes, but I imagine it’s something very similar. If Carlos isn’t the second-highest-paid, he’s third. “But I think Carlos is making substantially more than guys like Diego Lopes and Jean (Silva), and so on. Even for fights that aren’t for the title, he has a guaranteed seven-figure purse,” Lutkus said.
Carlos Prates’s Manager Says UFC Upset With Islam Makhachev