Carlos Ulberg has proven to be one of the best offensive weapons in the UFC’s light heavyweight division over the past few years, but the rising contender has been showing off his striking chops for much longer than that.
Prior to winning a UFC contract on Dana White’s Contender Series back in 2020, Ulberg was juggling a career in mixed martial arts (MMA) and professional kickboxing. His first love was kickboxing and it was east to see why. Ulberg ended up carving out a respectable 19-2 record with 12 knockouts. He even mixed in a professional boxing match in 2015 that he won by unanimous decision.
Needless to say, Ulberg’s kickboxing skills have transferred nicely over to his MMA game. The long and rangy New Zealand fighter has taken the UFC’s light heavyweight division by storm since his Octagon debut in 2021. This includes a 6-1 record, 7.41 strikes lander per minute, and the third-fastest knockout in UFC light heavyweight history with a vicious 12-second finish over Alonzo Menifield last May.
Ulberg, who turned 34 just last week, will put his high-level striking to the test against former UFC light heavyweight title challenger, Volkan Oezdemir, tomorrow morning (Sat., Nov. 23, 2024) at UFC Macau LIVE on ESPN+ from inside Galaxy Arena in Macau, China. It will undoubtedly be Ulberg’s biggest test to date and a massive opportunity to put himself in line for title contention heading into 2025.
Ahead of Ulberg’s matchup with Oezdemir, let’s take a look back at one of his most infamous stoppages from an impressive kickboxing career. Ulberg may have produced 12 total knockouts, but his front kick finish over Tafa Misipati back in 2017 has to take the cake. Check it out below along with some other highlights from “Black Jag:”
CARLOS ULBERG FIGHT WEEK.
Before making the jump to MMA, Ulberg started had a successful career in kickboxing
Ulberg would have a combined record of (19-2) with 12 knockouts in kickboxing!
He faces Volkan Oezdemir this Saturday at #UFCMacau
( : King in the Ring Fight… pic.twitter.com/TMSz28dpsz
— COMBAT SPORTS TODAY (@CSTodayNews) November 22, 2024
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