Carlos Ulberg and the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship Controversy

If possession is nine-tenths of the law, then somebody other than Carlos Ulberg is the UFC light heavyweight champion right now.

Newly crowned UFC light heavyweight champion Carlos Ulberg has lost his title belt just hours after winning it at UFC 327 in Miami. Ulberg defeated Jiri Prochazka by knockout in the first round on Saturday, April 16, 2026, at the Kaseya Center, improving his record to 15-1. However, during celebrations following the victory, Ulberg misplaced the championship belt while partying with friends.

Ulberg told Fox Sports Australia on Monday that he initially planned not to drink after the fight but accepted champagne to celebrate, which led to further drinking. “Then one thing leads to another and you’re doing shots,” he said. “So it’s ‘OK, I’ll have another, and another, and another…’”

After the fight, Ulberg’s group went to a nightclub for an afterparty and later returned to one of his friends’ apartments. He stated he did not want to carry the belt around during the festivities. “I didn’t want to be carrying the belt around so I think it’s still there at the apartment somewhere,” Ulberg said. “One of the boys probably has it in bed with him.”

Ulberg also revealed he suffered a right knee injury during the fight and has not yet been to the hospital for examination. He plans to travel to Las Vegas to consult doctors and participate in physical therapy at the UFC Performance Institute. “I blew out my knee, but I never counted myself out,” Ulberg said on the Paramount+ broadcast of UFC 327. “I knew that all I needed that one shot and I ended up getting it.”

Ulberg is just the third fighter to knock out Prochazka, joining Alex Pereira and Muhammed Lawal. Other fighters who earned main-card victories at UFC 327 include Cub Swanson, Dominick Reyes, Josh Hokit, and Paulo Costa.