Carlos Ulberg eyes former UFC title challenger Khalil Rountree as potential next opponent

Carlos Ulberg wants to put himself in position to fight for the UFC’s light heavyweight title, and sees a matchup against another former title challenger as a logical next opponent.

At UFC Fight Night 248 at Galaxy Arena in Macau, Ulberg (11-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC) picked up a unanimous decision over Volkan Oezdemir, who fought for the division’s title against Daniel Cormier in 2018. Next, Ulberg wants a crack at a more recent title challenger, Khalil Rountree, who fought Alex Pereira at UFC 307 last month.

“Obviously Khalil had that opportunity last time, so I think for the next step, my next step would be up against a guy like Khalil Rountree,” Ulberg told UFC.com in a post-fight interview.

Ulberg has won seven straight fights in the UFC’s 205-pound division. He’s No. 10 in the promotion’s light heavyweight rankings, but will move up and at the very least, swap spots with No. 8 Oezdemir (20-8 MMA, 8-7 UFC) after Saturday’s victory in Macau.

“Black Jag” knows there’s more work to be done before he can call for a title shot, and sees Rountree as a solid test. Besides a specific opponent, Ulberg also has a location in mind for his next potential fight too. The UFC visits Sydney for UFC 312 in February, which would be like a home game for the New Zealand-born fighter.

“It would be nice,” Ulberg said. “It’s always nice to compete in front of our own fans and people back home, or closer to home, anyway. If anyone else closer to the title would be ready to fight me in that short space of time, but yeah (I would want to fight in Sydney).”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 248.