Carlos Ulberg is planning something brand new for Jiri Prochazka in the UFC 327 curtain closer.
The fourth UFC numbered card of the Paramount era will take place in Miami on April 11, and a new champion is guaranteed to be crowned in the main event.
With Alex Pereira moving up to heavyweight for a shot at becoming the first-ever triple champ, Ulberg will battle Prochazka for the vacant light heavyweight throne.
‘Poatan’ laid out a blueprint with two wins over the Czech star, but ‘Black Jag’ isn’t planning to follow it.
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Carlos Ulberg sees routes to beating Jiri Prochazka that other fighters ‘haven’t yet explored’
Prochazka submitted Glover Teixeira at UFC 275 to become champion at 205 pounds, but a shoulder injury cut his reign short. Since then, he has failed to regain the crown twice, both times against Pereira.
After being stopped by the Brazilian in late 2023, Prochazka was knocked out by Pereira again in their short-notice UFC 303 main event in the summer of 2024.
It’s safe to say ‘Poatan’ has Prochazka’s number, but that does not mean Ulberg will be using Pereira’s triumphs as inspiration.
The New Zealander sees unexplored avenues to beating Prochazka, and he intends to pursue them come fight night at the Kaseya Center.
“Jiri is obviously the chaotic fighter,” Ulberg told MMA Junkie. “Chaos vs. order, is what it is. Yeah, that’s what that fight is. So it’s a fight that’s always been due to happen, and we’re here now, so this is it, and we’ve been preparing for years for this fight.
“We’ve always been watching Jiri on this come-up, and I’ve always been keeping an eye on a lot of the guys that I could potentially fight.
“Pereira has done a great job in nullifying his chaotic spurs, but there are a lot of other avenues that I think other fighters haven’t yet explored that we can work with,” he added.
“So, yeah, and I think that’s something that we’re going to be going with for our fight.”
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Photo by Ed Mulholland/Zuffa LLC
Prochazka has won two fights in a row since his second setback against Pereira. He knocked out both Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree Jr. to earn another shot.
Ulberg, meanwhile, is unbeaten since a KO defeat in his UFC debut against Kennedy Nzechukwu five years ago.
The Kiwi contender has reeled off nine consecutive wins, including one over a former champion in Jan Blachowicz. Most recently, Ulberg knocked out Dominick Reyes at UFC Perth.
