Relying upon the place you’re on the earth, you might have been asleep early Saturday morning (US time) when the UFC touched down in Macau, China for the final UFC Struggle Evening earlier than Dana White‘s promotion recesses for the Thanksgiving vacation subsequent week. If you happen to had been nonetheless getting some shuteye, you missed a top-10 contender at 205 lbs. get the job executed.
No. 10 contender Carlos Ulberg (11-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC), a 2020 graduate of Dana White’s Contender Sequence, was up second on the primary card when he battled No. 8 contender Volkan Ozedemir (20-8 MMA, 8-7 UFC) for the latter’s twenty ninth profession look in MMA. Whereas the previous wanted only a quick 12 seconds to eliminate Alonzo Menifield (15-5-1 MMA, 8-5-1 UFC) in Could throughout UFC St. Louis, he needed to work more durable towards Ozedemir.
A Stand-Up Battle All through
Late within the opening spherical, Ulberg started throwing counterpunches and mixtures to maintain his opponent sincere. This tempo continued through the early a part of the second spherical, the place he linked on a two-punch combo, giving Ozedemir a slight crimson masks.
At one level throughout spherical two, Ulberg transformed on 34 strikes to his adversary’s head, whereas Ozedemir landed 27 such pictures. Whereas Volkan Ozedemir pushed ahead in spherical three and made an effort to take Carlos Ulberg all the way down to the canvas, Ulberg remained stout, denying him the chance to make this a floor battle.
Within the remaining spherical’s remaining seconds, Ozedemir tried to land a takedown once more, however identical to the primary time, Ulberg’s protection was simply an excessive amount of for Ozedemir to deal with. After quarter-hour of stand-up motion, the judges returned a unanimous determination victory in favor of Carlos Ulberg (30-27, 30-27, 29-28.)
#UFCMacau Official End result: Carlos Ulberg (@UlbergCarlos 30-27, 30-27, 29-28) defeats Volkan Oezdemir by Unanimous Resolution.
Full Primary Card Outcomes
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In the course of the battle’s dwell broadcast, analyst Michael Bisping expressed shock that the battle didn’t finish with a end.
“I wasn’t certain who it was going to be, however I noticed a knockout on this battle,” Bisping stated towards the top of the competition.
Ulberg Praises Ozedemir Following Win
After the battle, Bisping entered the Octagon to speak to the victorious Carlos Ulberg, who had form phrases to say about Volkan Ozedemir.
“Volkan is an skilled fighter,” Ulberg started. “He’s clearly been in there with the very best. To organize for a man like that was robust. It was a mountain.”
Throughout the identical interview, Ulberg mentioned what it was wish to strategize for somebody of Ozedemir’s ilk.
“The gameplan was robust as a result of [if] you get caught within the mid-range with that man, he can knock anyone out,” the No. 10 contender informed the gang. “To organize for him, all we needed to do was attempt to make him miss, make him pay.”
Might The Stakes Get Increased Subsequent Time Out?
Saturday’s victory over Volkan Ozedemir marked seven in succession for Carlos Ulberg. So far as stakes go, this was additionally essentially the most essential battle to-date in his MMA profession, provided that Volkan Ozedemir beforehand challenged Daniel Cormier for the UFC Gentle Heavyweight Championship in 2018 throughout UFC 220 from Boston, MA.
If Ulberg will get his want, the stakes shall be raised for the second time in as many fights when he walks to the cage once more. Later Saturday, he talked about that he’s already received an adversary in thoughts for his subsequent look within the famed Octagon: No. 6 contender Khalil Rountree.
Again in October, through the UFC 307 principal occasion from Salt Lake Metropolis, Rountree confronted off towards present UFC Gentle Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira, with “Poatan” defending the 205-lb. strap with a fourth-round TKO by the use of punches. A local of New Zealand, Ulberg would like a particular date and host metropolis for his upcoming look: Feb. 8, 2025 throughout UFC 312 in Sydney, Australia, one thing he talked about in a backstage interview.
“It’s at all times good to compete in entrance of our personal followers and folks again house, or nearer to house, anyway,” he talked about. “If anybody else nearer to the title could be able to battle me in that quick house of time, however, yeah.”
Last Ideas
Anytime a fighter in any fight sports activities group can beat an opponent who previously challenged for the championship, which Carlos Ulberg did on Saturday in Macau, he’s earned the precise to name his shot. Feb. 8 is roughly two and a half months away as of press time, so he won’t be capable of battle in Sydney simply after the beginning of the brand new yr.
There’s no denying it, although: With this win, Carlos Ulberg is now firmly among the many high contenders at 205 lbs. Count on, on the very least, for him to be combating on the primary card subsequent outing, each time that could be.
