Fight Coverage
Co-Main Event Spotlight | UFC London
Get A Closer Look At The Light Heavyweight Clash Between Jan Błachowicz And Carlos Ulberg In London
Outside of Alex Pereira’s dominant reign as the light heavyweight champion in 2024, the 205-pound division’s throne has been more like a carousel since Jon Jones vacated the belt in 2020. At present, four of the division’s Top 5 once held the belt Magomed Ankalaev now has his vice grip on following his win at UFC 313. That makes for a hectic, entertaining and fascinating title picture in which a win or two could earn someone a crack at the belt.
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The co-main event between one of those former champions, Jan Błachowicz, and the red-hot Carlos Ulberg plays a major role in that mix. When they enter the Octagon in London’s O2 Arena on March 22, the stakes could not be higher for a non-title bout.
Jan Błachowicz
Błachowicz, who first captured the vacant title in 2020 and coined the term “Legendary Polish Power” somehow feels like the forgotten man in the championship mix. A major part of that is due to an injury-induced layoff that has kept him out of action since July 2023. That said, the 42-year-old remains a major factor at the top of the division. Before Pereira’s 2024 run, Błachowicz was the only man to successfully defend the light heavyweight title this decade when he stymied then-undefeated Israel Adesanya’s bid for double-champ status.
However, that was Błachowicz’s last definitive victory, as he lost his belt to Glover Teixeira seven months later. He did get his hand raised in May 2022 after his main event with Aleksandar Rakić, but that bout ended due to Rakić suffering a knee injury, which kept the “Rocket” out for nearly two years himself.
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Błachowicz then received a chance to regain the title after Jiří Procházka vacated the title in 2022, but when he squared off with Ankaalev at UFC 282, he wasn’t able to bring it home, as they fought to a split draw. He fell further out of the race when he welcomed Pereira to the division, dropping a split decision at UFC 291, which he remains steadfast in feeling he won the fight.
That, following shoulder surgery and the subsequent recovery, brings Błachowicz to London, where it feels like he is very much defending his place in line for a shot at the belt and a rematch with Ankalaev.
Carlos Ulberg
For the better part of the last three years, no light heavyweight has been on a hotter streak than Ulberg. “Black Jag” bounced back from his debut loss to Kennedy Nzechukwu—his first loss as a professional—with nothing but resounding results.
The New Zealander heads into UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs Brady on a seven-fight winning streak, including four first-round knockouts, a submission and two performance bonuses. His latest effort was a steady decision win over former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir, cementing his readiness for the best in the division.
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The 34-year-old alumnus of Dana White’s Contender Series is arguably the best chance for Auckland’s City Kickboxing to have itself another champion, and thus far, he has given Kiwi fans every reason to put that expectation on him.
Meeting in the Middle
While both men fashion themselves as knockout artists and boast a combined 16 knockouts on their records, it might behoove Błachowicz to mix his martial arts early and often against Ulberg. When things play out on the feet, Ulberg is often able to make the most of his highly technical striking. He is the divison’s all-time leader in strikes landed per minute (7.28) and ranks second all-time in striking differential (+2.98). What that often looks like is a steady diet of leg and body kicks as well as a sharp jab and a sneaky, but powerful, check hook.
Of course, Błachowicz more than held his own against Ulberg’s teammate, Adesanya, in their title fight, and arguably outstruck the former middleweight champion. But, he did so with the aid of mixing in takedowns, which he lands at a 50 percent clip (tied fifth all-time among light heavyweights). Ulberg has shown a good ability of defending and getting back to his feet, but Błachowicz does possess an unconventional, albeit effective, submission game if Ulberg isn’t mindful.
The fans in London get a treat of a card, and the co-main event between Błachowicz and Ulberg is exactly that.
UFC Fight Night: Edwards vs Brady took place live from O2 Arena in London, England on March 22, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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