UFC’s light heavyweight division is once again set to go through a transitional phase. In the wake of Alex Pereira vacating the championship he recaptured this past October, former titleholder Jiri Prochazka is now slated to battle fellow top contender Carlos Ulberg for vacant gold at UFC 327 on April 11 in Miami.
Pereira quickly expressed his interest in pursuing a heavyweight fight against former two-division champion Jon Jones after winning the 205-pound strap back from Magomed Ankalaev in their 2025 rematch. At UFC 320 that same night, Pereira’s old rival, Prochazka, further staked his claim for another crack at the title by dispatching Khalil Rountree in an epic three-round battle. Prochazka ultimately got the job done via third-round stoppage, besting Rountree in a strong Fight of the Year candidate.
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Speaking on Monday’s edition of “The Ariel Helwani Show,” Prochazka acknowledged that he wasn’t shocked to see how everything has unfolded atop the light heavyweight division since.
“I’m not surprised,” Prochazka told Uncrowned of Pereira’s decision. “I think it’s a gentleman thing. When you go up, it’s normal to release the title.
“I hoped [to fight Pereira again]. Possible opponents for me, there were Ulberg or Pereira. I wanted just one of these two for a title fight because I think other fighters don’t deserve it. I made enough [progress in the division] to take back what’s mine.”
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Prochazka, 33, has been somewhat plagued by his UFC kryptonite — Pereira — since his own title reign ended via injury in 2022. In his eight-fight Octagon career, Prochazka has suffered defeat only at the hands of the Brazilian, losing bouts in 2023 and 2024 via second-round knockouts. Prochazka said Monday he wasn’t fixated on the thought of a trilogy bout with Pereira, but is confident nonetheless that it will come together before all is said and done.
Regarding potential regrets, Prochazka simply wishes Pereira fights weren’t on as short of notice as they were. He’s since learned from those past mishaps under the brightest lights — with Ulberg now in his crosshairs, Prochazka has gone the extra mile. Having spent time in Mexico recently training in high elevation, Prochazka already did a mini-fight camp before he officially booked his upcoming title tilt with the Kiwi knockout artist.
“I already chose the way I like to hunt Ulberg, because he don’t like the pressure,” Prochazka said. “He don’t like to be hunted. This is what I say to myself — I need to be that one who catches this guy.
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“There is no other way to fight with him. He is fast, good kickboxer, he likes to jump a lot, be light on the legs. He don’t like to wrestle, he don’t like to be on the ground. So pressure, pressure — that’s it.”
Outside of fighting, Prochazka has new areas to focus on. His life is set to change drastically around the time of his next championship bid, as he and his girlfriend are expecting their first child.
The circumstances made it tricky for Prochazka to align on a fight at the start of the year. However, everything has now come together, and ideally he’ll get to focus on fatherhood this summer with the UFC light heavyweight championship sitting in his possession for the first time since 2022.
“I’d like to fight later in June. One month after the birth would be the best,” Prochazka said. “My girlfriend told me, ‘If you will have the title fight 11th of May, let’s do that, but it [would] have to be a big fight. Don’t fight some similar fight because you can fight all the year these normal fight.’ Then we start to negotiate with the UFC about the title fight.’”