UFC 327: How a brutal KO loss set Carlos Ulberg on the path toward light heavyweight gold
Ulberg began his UFC debut in total control, but ended it dropped and defeated. That loss — and the bonus money that came with it — transformed him from a part-time fighter to a full-time force at 205 pounds.
Carlos Ulberg was a few minutes into his UFC debut and already his work seemed to be just about finished. This was March of 2021, back when COVID was still a deterrent to large indoor gatherings and the UFC was still putting on pay-per-view events in its own little Apex arena. That meant it was nice and quiet in the cozy confines, nothing like the throng of fans he’ll fight in front of at Kaseya Center in Miami on Saturday, when he challenges for the vacant UFC light heavyweight title in the main event of UFC 327.
Viewers of the prelim broadcast back in 2021 could still hear the crisp thwack of Ulberg’s gloves as they found a home on Kennedy Nzechukwu’s face. They could almost feel the dull thud of an early head kick that sent Nzechukwu staggering off to one side. This newcomer from New Zealand’s kickboxing scene, still fresh off a quick knockout win on Dana White’s Contender Series a few months earlier, seemed to have the goods.
A finish couldn’t be far off. Not with the way Ulberg was landing, which at one point in the first round prompted referee Herb Dean to call for Nzechukwu to show he was still in the fight. Turned out, yeah, he was.
After barely surviving the opening frame, Nzechukwu found Ulberg considerably slowed in the second by a mixture of adrenaline and overexertion. The short notice. The effort he’d poured into finding that knockout blow.
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