Carlos Prates has been a fantastic edition to the UFC roster since earning his contract via the last season of the Contender Series.
The Fighting Nerds athlete has gone 3-0 inside the Octagon, stopping all three opponents with devastating finishes.
His latest win over Li Jingliang at UFC 305 set him up well for an even bigger name next time out, and given the fact that he has put on a show with each appearance, a ranked opponent isn't out of the question.
When looking at the fighters that occupy the ranking sports from 15-10, one name in particular stands out to Prates.
Carlos Prates Reveals That He Emulated Michael Page For 'MVP's Only Knockout Loss
In a recent interview with Sherdog.com, Prates gave his thoughts on all of the potential ranked opponents that he could be matched with in the near future.
He revealed an interesting story from his earlier career when arriving at the name of one of the division's most talented strikers.
Michael "Venom" Page is an incredibly difficult opponent to train for because you don't find people that have his unique style combined with size and reach, very easily.
Prates said that he has been a stand in for "MVP" when he was training alongside Douglas Lima, who fought Page twice in Bellator.
In their first meeting, Lima would hand the Brit his first defeat at Bellator, via a ruthless second-round knockout.
Prates believes that after being a part of the camp for this fight, he has the secret to become the second man to stop Page.
Michael Page would be a really good fight. I would like to fight him, it would be a great bonus again. You know the first time he lost to Douglas Lima? I was a sparring partner of Douglas. I was doing like MVP and Douglas was doing his game. He, Douglas and his coach, came to Thailand and we trained all together... So it's kinda I know the way to knock the guy out.