Josh Hokit improbably gave the heavyweight division a little life at UFC 327
In the space of an hour at UFC 327, the sun broke through a little bit for the UFC’s big boy class. But is it sustainable?
Speaking in terms of strict improbability, Carlos Ulberg’s personal rendition of “Project Hail Mary” at UFC 327 on Saturday night was pretty high up there. After years of toil to get his shot, there he was, fighting for the lightweight heavyweight belt against an assassin like Jiri Prochazka, with a blown-out knee that he couldn’t put any weight on, in the opening stages of a long five-round fight. In the old sports phrase book, that’s what’s known as finding yourself with your back against the wall , yet Ulberg did the only thing left for him.
He delivered a left hand that sent Prochazka to the canvas, and realistically into the five stages of acceptance. That was a highly improbable thing to happen. As was Paula Costa’s third-round ambush of the unbeaten Amazat Murzakanov.
Wasn’t Costa huffing air early in the second round, looking like he was back in Salt Lake City dealing with the altitude for his fight with Luke Rockhold? Somehow Costa, in his new weight class, found the reserves. He put away Murzakanov with a head kick in that third round, and presto, a new player at 205 pounds.
Improbable stuff. Yet nothing compares, in terms of sheer inconceivability, to what Josh Hokit did against Curtis Blaydes in the swing bout in Miami . This was a heavyweight Shiloh.
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