"The Black Jag" has finally got his first victory inside the UFC.
Moments ago, City Kickboxing fighter Carlos Ulberg (Tainui, Te Atiawa, Hāmoa) took to the octagon in Houston, Texas to claim a unanimous decision win over United States light heavyweight Fabio Cherant in the preliminary fight card for UFC 271.
Early on in the fight, Ulberg kicked Cherant low resulting in a stoppage for Cherant to recover. When he did, the New Englander got a lot more wild swinging for Ulberg and landing a clean shot to stun the Aotearoa fighter. Ulberg responded in kind, however, by taking Cherhant down to the ground.
Throughout the fight, Ulberg controlled much of the action, with a spinning heel kick and a powerful left hook to show. To seal the deal, Ulberg took down Cherant once more and showed some ground action in the last round.
With the score from the judges at 30-27 in favour of the former King in the Ring champion, Ulberg's UFC record now stands at one win and one loss and his pro record 6-1.
City Kickboxing's record for the UFC 271 PPV event is now at one win and one loss, with debutant Mike 'Blood Diamond' Mathetha losing to opponent Jeremiah Wells by way of a rear-naked choke which left the fighter from Aotearoa unconscious after he refused to tap out in the UFC Fight Pass preliminary card.
Later on tonight in the main event, UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya defends the gold against Māori-Aussie fighter Robert Whittaker.