Carlos Prates’ terrifying Flyweight teammate, Marcos Degli, fights for a UFC contract tonight

Another Brazilian killer is knocking on Ultimate Fighting Championship’s (UFC) door.

Marcos Degli — a close friend and long-time teammate of top-ranked UFC Welterweight contender, Carlos Prates — will compete for a UFC contract tonight (Tues., Sept. 22, 2026) on Contender Series inside Meta APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Degli (14-3) will put his ridiculous 12-fight win streak on the line against Fury FC Flyweight champion, Paris Moran (14-3).

And make no mistake: Degli is one of the most dangerous Flyweight prospects in the world.

The 26-year-old Brazilian has finished 13 of his 14 professional victories, recording nine knockouts and four submissions. After beginning his career with a shaky 2-3 record, “Tailandes” completely turned things around and has not lost since June 2022. His current tear includes three consecutive knockout wins and three LFA Flyweight title victories.

Degli most recently defended his interim title by folding submission specialist, Luis Aguiar, with a nasty left hook to the body in just 95 seconds. Before that, he stopped Matheus Severino in the third round and flattened Lincon Santos with one punch to capture LFA gold.

He even owns an amateur victory over current UFC Flyweight, Andre Lima.

Prates has been one of the loudest voices pushing UFC to sign his close friend and Vale Top Team stablemate. After knocking out Geoff Neal at UFC 319, “The Nightmare” used his Octagon interview to personally pitch Degli to UFC CEO, Dana White.

“Marcos Degli,” Prates said. “He’s undefeated in 11 fights, and he’s the LFA champion.”

Degli later admitted it was emotional hearing his friend say his name on MMA’s biggest stage, especially with White standing nearby and listening.

UFC has had Degli on its radar for quite some time. In fact, he nearly skipped Contender Series altogether earlier this year when Jack Jenkins withdrew from his UFC Perth fight against Marwan Rahiki (those details here).

Degli was already in Australia supporting Prates and volunteered to face Rahiki on just a few days’ notice — at Featherweight, two divisions above his usual weight class. UFC ultimately signed Ollie Schmid for the assignment, but Degli’s willingness to accept such a dangerous fight showed how badly he wanted his opportunity.

Standing in his way is Moran, a durable 30-year-old veteran who has shared the cage with several UFC fighters and Contender Series alumni, including reigning UFC Flyweight champion, Joshua Van. Moran captured Fury FC’s title with a split decision win over Roybert Echeverria in May and owns eight decision victories.

Degli enters tonight as roughly a -400 betting favorite, and if he delivers another violent finish, Prates may finally get his wish.

What is the origin of your username here on MMA Mania?

Mine is pretty obvious. And, honestly, I can't remember the tag I used before I started writing at SBNation some ten years ago. Elsewhere I use the tag 'timespyre' mostly because it's not taken anywhere and I kinda hate putting numbers and underscores into things. And I like it because it's not clear if it means time spyre (like spire) or time's pyre. And it's got Tim in it.

I've probably used Timbo Slice somewhere, too...

Enough about me, though, tell me the story of your name!

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