After defeating Volkan Oezdemir at UFC Macau, Carlos Ulberg climbed to 6th in the UFC light heavyweight rankings. This put him closer to the title picture and a matchup against Alex Pereira. ‘Black Jag’ is already on a 7-fight win streak, with only one loss blotting his professional MMA career. His recent performances have certainly made the fighting community think that he can be a credible threat to ‘Poatan’s light heavyweight throne. And now, Israel Adesanya has also backed him up for the championship title. 

During the pre-fight press conference for UFC Saudi Arabia, a reporter asked ‘The Last Stylebender’ about the City Kickboxing fighter who’d get the belt next. Without wasting a single moment, the former 2-time middleweight champion named Kai Kara-France. But the MMA reporter wanted to know about ‘Black Jag’s stance in the title picture. He asked, “What about Ulberg?”

Given that the #6 light heavyweight contender has an impressive career with a black for finishing his bouts, it wouldn’t take him too long to get to the #1 contender’s spot. This will certainly give him a clear-cut shot at the light heavyweight title.

Winning 7 of his 12 fights with KO/TKO and 1 by submission, the fighting community has expressed their excitement to see how he would fare against Pereira. And Adesanya was of the same mind, as well. He said, “Yeah, he’s right up there. 2 more fights and Ulberg is the champion of the world.”

Israel Adesanya was supportive of his teammates’ stance on the future of the LHW division. But first, Ulberg will have to cut through Jan Blachowicz at UFC London on 22nd March 2025. He’s already competing against a top 3 light heavyweight contender. And a title shot isn’t too far away. But what does ‘Black Jag’ think of his stance against the man with the hands of stone?

Carlos Ulberg wants a superhuman fight against Alex Pereira

During a conversation with MMA Fighting back in November 2024, Ulberg was all in for a fight against Alex Pereira. He said, “Super, just superhuman. I feel like the time is endless for this guy. He’s a champion, a true warrior, and nothing but respect for the guy, and this is the true reason why I feel like I want to fight someone like him, because it doesn’t matter if he has the title or not. I definitely want to fight Pereira, for sure, purely because I feel like he’s earned his way into being a great champion.”

In another conversation with Sky Sports New Zealand prior to his fight against Oezdemir, Ulberg revealed that he had been studying ‘Poatan’ for quite some time now. After all, the Brazilian champion has achieved his prime as of now. The New Zealander was a fan of the way Pereira operated inside the Octagon. His fight IQ and current position were what made the LHWs keep an eye on him. And that’s why Ulberg announced, “I’m coming up, and soon I’ll get my chance.”

‘Black Jag’ has already proven that he can entertain the crowd. And if he climbs through Blachowicz at UFC London, he will definitely witness a climb in the UFC athlete rankings. And then, all he would need is one more win to get a shot at the championship title. 

Do you think ‘Black Jag’ can get a fight against Pereira in 2025? Who do you think would win if the two happened to lock horns in the Octagon? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.