Li Jingliang and Carlos Prates at the UFC 305 weigh-in. Photo credit: Youtube/UFC
Li Jingliang returned to the cage at UFC 305 to face Carlos Prathes, who hadn’t even made his UFC debut the last time Jingliang fought.
Brazilian welterweight prospect Prates had won his two UFC bouts and his previous nine bouts, racking up eight straight knockouts along the way — and this bout took place on his birthday — against “The Hill,” the longest-serving Chinese UFC fighter in history with a close win-loss record since 2019.
The southpaw, Prathes, looked taller and longer in the cage than his reach. Carlos started to move forward with left hands, but the two men explored each other’s positions, attacking mainly with leg kicks. With two minutes left in the first round, Carlos Prathes landed his first power punch, sending Jingliang to his knees. It was a momentary knockdown at best, but the Brazilian drew blood first.
Carlos slowly let go, tightening his defense as Lee tried to break his guard with combinations. With 30 seconds left, Pratts took Leach down, then again 10 seconds later. But Lee was quick to his feet and countered the blows. In the final seconds, he lunged and landed a hit on his opponent’s jaw, only to be rocked again.
After being hurt so many times in the first round, it was to be seen if the Jingliang team would change their plans. Leach started the round aggressively, with Prates trying to back him up against the fence and land some low kicks. Prates rocked him again, then landed a half-leg head kick, but Lee managed to withstand it. Thirty seconds later, another left punch put Leach down.
Jingliang got up and was cornered against the ropes, but someone soon appeared who could end the match with one blow. For the first time, Li Jingliang was knocked down by a blow and it took him almost a minute to regain consciousness after such a brutal knockout.
With highlight knockouts like this and an unbeaten 3-0 record in the UFC, Carlos Prathes is sure to face a ranked opponent in his next bout.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Carlos Prates defeats Li Jingliang by knockout (punches), Round 2, 4:02
