UFC Hall of Famer Rashad Evans is firmly backing Carlos Ulberg to capture gold in his vacant title showdown with Jiri Prochazka at UFC 327.
Ulberg is scheduled to face Prochazka in a 205-pound championship headliner at UFC 327, which takes place at the Kaseya Center in Miami, after Alex Pereira vacated the belt to move to heavyweight. Ulberg enters the bout on a nine-fight winning streak.
Evans, a former light heavyweight champion and current UFC analyst, likes what he sees in the surging contender. "Ulberg is a straight sniper," Evans said, adding, "He's accurate, he's power and he's got the confidence. He's going to be tough to beat." He later made his stance clear: "I'm going to lean with Ulberg here."
Evans believes Ulberg’s mentality is a major factor. "He doesn't know all the bad things that can happen in the cage yet," Evans said. "That's Ulberg. He doesn't have that trauma in the cage." Still, he noted a path for Prochazka: "The only way I see him losing this fight is if he gets pulled out of himself. If Jiri is able to pull him into one of those classic scrambles."
Evans praised Prochazka’s spirit but highlighted a key contrast. "As much as I love Prochazka and he's such a warrior... I just feel like at this point the technique is a little too loose for somebody that is as accurate and hits as hard as Ulberg. That, to me, is a difference-maker."
Looking ahead, Evans added that Ulberg is "still yet to come out of his shell a little bit" and suggested "we're going to see a different kind of Ulberg once he becomes champion."
