NEW YORK – Carlos Ulberg beat Nicolae Negumereanu with a first-round knockout Saturday to open up the preliminary card at UFC 281 at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Take a look inside the fight with Ulberg, who moved to 3-0 in 2022, including two straight by first-round knockout.
Nicolae Negumereanu vs. Carlos Ulberg
Result: Carlos Ulberg def. Nicolae Negumereanu via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 3:44
Updated records: Ulberg (7-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC), Negumereanu (13-2 MMA, 4-2 UFC)
Key stat: Ulberg has five of his seven wins by knockout.
Ulberg on the fight's key moment
“I expected him to be more on the back foot and go with more of a counter, but he came with a different approach to what I’d imagined. So we went with Plan B, which was to walk him down with something and then come in with my counters.”
Ulberg on sharing a fight week house with teammates
“To be in a house full of your family members, your training partners, your team, it’s amazing. It really does lift your spirits. I don’t think anyone else is doing that – any team.”
Ulberg on what he wants next
“As cliche as it sounds, we’ll let the masters behind the scenes doe their work. There are a few guys I’m looking out for and some guys I think would be a good fight for me. (Alonzo) Menifield – he’s been knocking out a few guys and he’s got some notable wins. I think that would be quite a good matchup.”
To hear more from Ulberg, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 281.