"I'll see you there" - Carlos Ulberg talks potential Alex Pereira heavyweight fight, possibly moving up in weight

Carlos Ulberg has put forth his take on a potential fight between himself and former UFC middleweight (185-pound) and light heavyweight (205-pound) champion Alex Pereira. 

New Zealand's Ulberg has also asserted that he's open to an eventual move up in weight, going to the heavyweight (265-pound) division. 

Carlos Ulberg talks potential Alex Pereira fight at heavyweight, possible move to the division of giants

Carlos Ulberg recently traveled to the United States of America ahead of the UFC Freedom 250 event, the co-headlining match of which saw Brazil's Alex Pereira make his long-awaited heavyweight division debut. 

Pereira faced Ciryl Gane for the interim UFC heavyweight championship and ended up losing via second-round TKO at the event. Despite the defeat, "Poatan" -- who's also a former Glory Kickboxing middleweight and light heavyweight champion -- affirmed that he'll continue his pursuit of heavyweight gold and would ideally like to rematch Gane. 

Speaking to Full Send MMA prior to last Sunday's Pereira-Gane fight, Carlos Ulberg heaped praise on the Brazilian combat sports legend. "Black Jag" notably suggested that a potential fight between him and Pereira, according to him, is more likely to materialize at heavyweight. 

Ulberg predicted that Pereira would probably stay at heavyweight even if things wouldn't go his way at UFC Freedom 250. He stated, "I think he's done his dash in the light heavyweight division, and he's gonna continue on with the heavyweight division. And I'll see you there." 

Upon being asked whether he's moving up to heavyweight, Ulberg indicated that he'd notch a few title defenses at light heavyweight first and then head to the division of giants. The 35-year-old said: 

"I mean, I'll do my thing in the light heavyweight division and keep what I need to do, and defend the title as many times. And then I'm gonna be putting on a bit of size because, you know, I'm getting older and things are not working the way they should be." 

Reaffirming that he's more likely to fight Pereira at heavyweight rather than light heavyweight, Ulberg noted, "That could be a possibility." 

The striking savant implied that Pereira has achieved success at middleweight and light heavyweight and would look to seek a third title at heavyweight. Underscoring that he'll "do the same," Ulberg made an allusion to his own two-division championship ambitions. 

 

Watch Carlos Ulberg discuss a potential Alex Pereira clash and heavyweight move below (*comments at the 5:15-minute mark of the video): 

Carlos Ulberg gives a timeline for his return in 2027 as speculation grows about his next opponent

Elsewhere during his conversation with Full Send MMA, Carlos Ulberg shed light on his road to recovery from the knee injury -- the damaged ACL on his right leg -- which he sustained in his title-winning performance over Jiri Prochazka in April. 

Ulberg emphasized that he's recovering well and is eyeing a comeback to the octagon in the first quarter of 2027. The UFC hasn't officially announced his next opponent for his maiden title defense as of yet. 

However, speculation has abounded that former light heavyweight kingpin Jiri Prochazka and ex-middleweight title challenger Paulo Costa could clash, perhaps for the interim light heavyweight title, at UFC 330 on August 15. 

Moreover, ex-light heavyweight champion Magomed Ankalaev is booked to fight former light heavyweight title challenger Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC Abu Dhabi on July 25. 

The consensus is that the Prochazka-Costa winner or the Ankalaev-Rountree winner could possibly challenge Ulberg for the title in early 2027.