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Carlos Ulberg secured a second-round TKO against Nicolae Negumereanu at UFC 281.
As Madison Square Garden started to pile in with MMA fans, Ulberg and Negumereanu were featured in a light heavyweight showdown to start UFC 281. Coming into the fight, ‘Black Jag’ was receiving mixed feedback.
The City Kickboxing product made his UFC debut in 2021 after being awarded a contract on Dana White’s Contender Series. Ulberg immediately received attention for being Israel Adesanya’s training partner and possessing vicious power.
Ulberg lost his UFC debut to Kennedy Nzechukwu, and concerns about his cardio and fight IQ were questioned. Since then, ‘Black Jag’ beat Fabio Cherant and Tafon Nchukwi before starting UFC 281 with a bang.
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The 31-year-old came out with several heavy leg kicks that slowed down Negumereanu. He then used his accurate striking to control the distance before landing a devastating left hook that led to a TKO victory. Ulberg is one of four fighters from City Kickboxing competing at UFC 281, joining Israel Adesanya, Dan Hooker, and Brad Riddell.
Watch Carlos Ulberg take out Nicolae Negumereanu with a second-round TKO at UFC 281 below:
Fans react to Carlos Ulberg finishing Nicolae Negumereanu at UFC 281
Despite winning two consecutive fights, Carlos Ulberg seemed underrated going into UFC 281 due to his promotional debut loss. Although his striking was never questioned, other factors, including cardio and grappling, still needed to be validated. After Ulberg looked phenomenal against Negumereanu, UFC fans were impressed, with some comments on Twitter saying:
“Man that left was so fast and clean”
“I can just imagine CKB screaming in the back”
“That’s a good way to start for the CKB team”
“One fight in and it’s already violent I hope this is the theme”
“He looked so good tonight. Wow, nice KO.”
“Too quick tonights gonna be a banger”
Ulberg’s UFC 281 performance will likely lead to a step up in competition. At 31, ‘Black Jag’ has shown to be drastically more than just a sparring partner of Israel Adesanya. The CKB product is now 3-0 in 2022, with two consecutive first-round knockouts.
