UFC star Carlos Prates sat at the UFC 319 post-event press conference enjoying a well-earned cigarette after delivering one of the night’s most spectacular finishes.
“Well Carlos, we can already smell the cigarette when we were walking in here,” opened one reporter, acknowledging the elephant in the room with good humor. Prates had just delivered a first-round knockout of Geoff Neal with a perfectly timed spinning back elbow at 4:59. Prates was savoring every moment of his victory celebration.
When asked about his post-knockout cigarette experience, Prates was candid: “Feel amazing. My birthday, you know, a lot of hard work. Just paying off. I’m feeling amazing. Now I want to celebrate.”
The Brazilian welterweight’s smoking habits became a topic of curiosity when Joe Rogan questioned them during the broadcast. Without hesitation, Prates revealed his daily consumption: “Maybe 8, 10, depends on the day, you know.”
Prates’ knockout represented a powerful comeback after his loss to Ian Machado Garry, and he was clearly relishing the moment. The victory was part of a perfect 3-0 night for his Fighting Nerds team. “You know, I’m really happy. Everybody on the gym work hard, work so much. So it’s just hard work paying off, you know,” he explained.
Looking ahead, Prates called out Leon Edwards for UFC Rio, though he remained open to fighting Michael Page if Edwards declined. When asked about potentially landing his signature spinning elbow on MVP, Prates acknowledged the challenge: “I think I need to… if you we fight… I think we need… I need to plan something different, you know. Because he will be like… he going to pay attention about my elbow right now.”
Prates is well known for his smoking habit, and whether it will serve him well in the future remains to be seen.
