UFC Fight Night 236 Prelims: Carlos Prates Zaps Trevin Giles for One-Punch Knockout

Carlos Prates made his one shot count.

The Fighting Nerds welterweight broke into the Ultimate Fighting Championship win column in a successful promotional debut, as he punched out Trevin Giles in the second round of their featured UFC Fight Night 236 prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Prates (18-6, 1-0 UFC) sealed the deal 4:03 into Round 2.

Giles (16-6, 7-6 UFC) was in charge for a majority of the match. He blasted the Brazilian with jabs, cut loose with power punching combinations and zeroed in on the legs with kicks. While Prates answered with brutal stepping knees to the body, he appeared to be digging a two-rounds-to-none hole when lightning struck. He followed a jab with a clean straight left that sent Giles crashing to the canvas. No follow-up shots were required.

Prates will carry an eight-fight winning streak into his next assignment.

Meanwhile, former Atomic Fighting Championship titleholder Bolaji Oki rode a persistent jab to a split decision over Xtreme Couture prospect Timothy Cuamba in a three-round lightweight battle. All three cageside judges struck 29-28 scorecards: Chris Lee for Cuamba, Michael Bell and Chris Leben for Oki.

A late-notice substitution for Damir Hadzovic, Cuamba (8-2, 0-1 UFC) consolidated a second-round takedown with some effective ground-and-pound but otherwise proved ineffective. He had no answer for the Oki jab. “The Zulu Warrior” often paired with second and third jabs or power punches, leaving visible reddening on Cuamba’s face. Oki (9-1, 1-0 UFC) stepped up his attack in the third round, where he mixed in powerful hooks to the body and occasional close-range knee strikes.

The 28-year-old Oki has won nine fights in a row.

Further down the card, Konklak Suphisara pressed forward in her slow but steady climb at 115 pounds, as she laid claim to a unanimous decision over Bruna Brasil in a tepid three-round women’s strawweight confrontation. All members of the judiciary scored it the same: 29-28 for Suphisara (9-3, 6-2 UFC).

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Brasil (9-4-1, 1-2 UFC) chose not to shift gears and ultimately failed to force the Tiger Muay Thai product out of her comfort zone. Suphisara leaned on deft footwork, consistent lateral movement and strikes to all levels across the 15-minute exercise. She executed a takedown near the end of the first round, handled Brasil in the clinch and remained content to pile up points with accurate punches and kicks from the outside.

Suphisara, 28, has rattled off three straight wins.

Elsewhere, Gor MMA standout Bogdan Guskov rebounded from a Sept. 2 submission defeat to Volkan Oezdemir, as he buried “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 30 finalist Zac Pauga with punches in the first round of their light heavyweight pairing. Guskov (15-3, 1-1 UFC) drew the curtain 3:38 into Round 1.

Pauga (6-3, 1-3 UFC) stung the hulking Uzbekistan native with repeated kicks to the lower leg, a few thudding right hands and a sharp elbow in the clinch, only to have his chin betray him. Guskov froze him with a two-punch volley, then let fly with follow-up shots as “The High Chief” hunched over and collapsed.

It was the 12th first-round finish of Guskov’s career.

Finally, undefeated promotional newcomer Hyder Amil put away fellow Dana White’s Contender Series graduate Fernie Garcia with punches in the second round of their featherweight clash. A short-notice replacement for Melsik Baghdasaryan, Garcia (10-5, 0-4 UFC) checked out 2:12 into Round 2.

Amil (9-0, 1-0 UFC) pressured the Fortis MMA rep backward with a persistent jab and counter right hands before setting off a series of reversals in the first round. Both men progressed to the back and threatened with rear-naked chokes, though Garcia exhausted his gas tank in a bid to turn the tide in his favor. Amil capitalized at the start of the middle stanza. He pinned Garcia to the fence with punches and body kicks, then cut loose with shots from both hands until referee Mark Smith had seen enough.

The 33-year-old Amil has finished six of his first nine opponents.

In other action, Polish karateka Marcin Prachnio (17-7, 4-5 UFC) outstruck ex-Resurrection Fighting Alliance titleholder Devin Clark (14-9, 8-9 UFC) to a unanimous verdict in their three-round light heavyweight scrap, earning 30-27 scores from all three judges; former Tachi Palace Fights champion Max Griffin (20-10, 8-8 UFC) eked out a contentious split decision—29-28, 28-29, 29-28—over Jeremiah Wells (12-4-1, 4-2 UFC) in a three-round welterweight affair; and an accidental illegal kick to the groin from Daniel Marcos (15-0, 2-0 UFC) resulted in a no contest 3:28 into the second round of his bantamweight tilt with Qileng Aori (25-11, 3-3 UFC).