After Khalil Rountree Jr was forced out of his co-main event fight with Jamahal Hill at UFC 303 due to a positive drug test, Carlos Ulberg has now agreed to step in to replace him on five weeks notice.
The 33-year-old Ulberg is only a couple of weeks on from his last Octagon appearance, an impressive 12 second KO victory over Alonzo Menifield at UFC On ESPN 56.
That marked the New Zealander’s 6th win in a row in the UFC, and is the 4th of those to have ended by strikes inside the opening round, having also TKO’d both Tafon Nchukwi and Ihor Potieria as well as KO’ing Nicolae Negumereanu.
That leaves Ulberg ranked No.11 at light-heavyweight heading into his fight against former 205lb champion Hill, who is coming off an unsuccessful attempt to win back the title he vacated last year against Alex Pereira, suffering a 1st round KO defeat.
Prior to that the 33-year-old Hill had been on a four-fight winning streak that has saw him KO Jimmy Crute and Johnny Walker inside the first round, followed by a a TKO finish against Thiago Silva and then a title-winning decision win over Glover Teixeira.
Hill vs. Ulberg will remain in the co-main event spot on a UFC 303 card that will be headlined by a blockbuster showdown between the returning Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler.
