UFC 327: Prochazka vs Ulberg - Apr 11 🇺🇸🌴

[jimufctna24]

I was a bit sad to read that Jiri lost again. He's a likeable oddball imo. 

[Carbomb]

I'm just fucked off that cunt Hokit won. Hope Gane or Aspinall smacks his face off.

[wandshogun09]

Well this was quite a show. These Miami cards always tend to deliver.

Probably the worst possible result for the division and as a Jiri fan I’m gutted but, fair play, that was some win for Carlos Ulberg. Blew his knee out and still managed to spark Jiri on one leg in the same round.

New champ. Unfortunately, Jiri hasn’t came off great in the aftermath for me. He immediately started talking about how he ‘gave’ the fight away by ‘showing mercy’ when he realised Ulberg’s knee was toast. Even as a fan of Jiri, I’ve gotta say that’s utter bollocks. The footage is there for all to see. Almost as soon as Ulberg hurts his knee, the first thing Jiri does is start throwing leg kicks. Can’t fault him for that. It’s ruthless but it’s fair game. The title is on the line and you have to put compassion aside and go for the kill. Absolutely get that. Just don’t pretend you were ‘showing mercy’ and let him off the hook when you clearly didn’t. Just smacks of him making excuses and not wanting to give Ulberg the credit. Ulberg’s understandably gave an arsey response. I still like Jiri and I’ll root for him if they ever rematch but it wasn’t a good look for him really. Maybe this is what Ulberg needed though. Not the injury, obviously. But a rival. A bit of needle. It’s never gonna be Khabib vs McGregor or Jones vs Cormier but it’s something. My indifference to Ulberg has always been that he’s seemed too bland as a personality and some of his fights have followed suit. There’s something there now after this. Not just him becoming champ but the way he did it. Overcoming the injury, scoring that KO, now he’s being more outspoken and calling out Jiri’s excuse making. There’s finally something to talk about where Ulberg is concerned. So of course, now he’s gonna be on the sidelines. Not sure how severe the injury is but it looked bad on the replays. He could be out a while. He’s only just won the belt and we already might be looking at an interim strap soon. Nothing’s ever straightforward with 205 is it?

Paulo Costa scoring the headkick KO against Murzakanov was nasty.

Enjoyed the fight while it lasted and I thought Murzakanov looked good until he didn’t. Costa’s kicks were heavy though and his body attacks were clearly adding up as it went on. Then Costa just ended him in the third. If Costa was more consistent/active and fought like this more I’d be a lot less negative on him. He was clearly up for this. Even when Murzakanov was having some success earlier in the fight, Costa just bit down and kept at it. Maybe 205 is the right division for him going forward. Granted, Murzakanov was a small 205er but I like the move up for Costa. Feels fresh. Sod the weight cut off. He’s immediately gone from unranked at Light Heavyweight to #7 with this win, so he’s already in the mix now. Just looking at the rankings, Costa vs Rountree immediately leaps off the page as a no brainer. Really hope that’s next. Anyone catch that clip of Trump telling Costa how beautiful he is at cageside after the fight?

Hokit vs Blaydes was barmy. Didn’t really know what to expect out of this but I never thought we’d get a scrap like that. For one, Hokit was untested going in and two, Blaydes just hasn’t ever typically been the type who ends up in these kinds of crazy fights. Hokit definitely won. Sadly. An absolute bellend of a man but, as much as I wanted Blaydes to mess him up, I couldn’t score it for him. He had his moments though. It wasn’t the complete steamrolling the commentators were making it out to be. They both had each other hurt and wobbled multiple times, Hokit just did it more.

This got old quick for me. First time he did it was whatever. By the 93rd time he did it? But the fight was wildly entertaining. As much as I loathe Hokit, I can’t deny it. I’m not on board with some of the talk like he’s a world beater now though. Yeah, he’s got some things going for him. He’s clearly very game, he’s aggressive, has some power, has the wrestling and he’s relatively young for Heavyweight at 28. Although it’s a rough 28. But he also got hurt a few times himself here, looked gassed after about two minutes and, despite landing a ton of punches, couldn’t close the show. And it’s not like Blaydes is known for being mega durable. Obviously the weight difference played a part there. Looking at Hokit, he looks like he could easily make 205. I just don’t think he’s gonna have the power to put the top Heavyweights out. I mean, look at this…

A seven punch combination, all of them landed and this was deep into the fight when Blaydes had already been weakened. And Hokit couldn’t even drop him at that point, let alone stop him. And with how sloppy his defence was here, it’s only a matter of time until he gets brutally slept himself. But it’s not what a lot of the fanbase wants to hear at the moment. He’s the new flavour of the month. And let’s bear in mind, a lot of fans played down Tom Aspinall’s win over Blaydes as if he’d ’beat nobody’ when the Aspinall vs Jones talks were going on. And Aspinall flattened Blaydes in a minute. Now Hokit’s getting gassed up for going the distance in a back and forth war with him?

None of this is to take away from how fun the fight itself was to watch though. I didn’t get the result I wanted but it way surpassed my expectations as far as entertainment goes. Enjoyed the shit out of it, despite detesting Hokit. Predictably there was also lot of reaction saying it was just a sloppy mess and stuff, and it was, but I don’t really go into Heavyweight fights expecting technical brilliance. In a division that’s been a wasteland for what feels like forever, this was much needed.

On 4/13/2026 at 4:16 PM, Kfogg1991 said:

Then the greatest heavyweight fight ever 

I’m not on board with this though. Just not buying the propaganda. Think a lot of people need to watch Hunt vs Bigfoot 1 again. Either that or a lot of people haven’t seen it in the first place and are just going with the Rogan and DC hyperbole. It was a nutty fight and it’s definitely the best Heavyweight fight we’ve seen in a while. But I think the division being as shit as it has been for so long has made this look slightly better than it actually was. It’s the wrong time to be bigging him up given the new headlines but Mark Hunt had a bunch of tremendous fights. Big Nog probably had even more. Nog vs Couture is awesome. Nog vs Sapp. Stipe vs JDS 1 is a forgotten banger. Cain vs Werdum is another. Lesnar vs Carwin, Fedor vs Fujita, Kongo vs Barry, Arlovski vs Browne, Barnett vs Nog 1. Fuck, as much as I hated the result, Mir vs Nog 2 with Mir coming back from a pasting to break Nog’s arm is absolutely mental. Fucking Frye vs Takayama! Not saying all these are better than Hokit vs Blaydes, I just think MMA fans have very short memories now and I’m not rating this #1 just because they told me to. It was great. It’d be on the list, probably somewhere in the top ten, but I’m not going along with them calling it #1 now like it’s an undebatable fact. Really don’t mean to put a negative spin on what was a stupidly fun fight but, man, I think recency bias is running wild here.

Hokit’s already booked against Derrick Lewis on the White House card in June. Madness. That’s a quick turnaround after a fight like this. But according to Dana, the Orange Nonce asked him why Lewis wasn’t on the White House card, Dana like a good boy immediately got on the blower to Lewis, Lewis agreed to fight on the card, then the Hokit fight played out how it did and they got it done. Like with this Blaydes fight, of course I want Lewis to win. And I definitely think he’s got a higher chance of landing that KO death blow than Blaydes did. He’s absolutely a bigger puncher. But he’s also likely to just fold if he doesn’t like the way it’s going. I’ll be amazed if that one goes the distance either way but I’d love to see Lewis obliterate him.

Reyes vs Walker was cack. Nothing even really to say about it other than it was really the only shit fight on the card. Was surprised, to be honest. Given both guys track records and their abilities to finish and get finished, you wouldn’t have expected such a nothing happening snoozer out of these two. Awful. Literally the best part of this was when Cormier randomly started talking about shepherds pie. Didn’t expect to hear that in the middle of a UFC show. Now that’s true evolution. From barbaric, human cockfighting to shepherds pie. The sport’s came a long way.

Cub Swanson couldn’t have asked for a better farewell fight than that. Reminded me a lot of Robbie Lawler’s send-off against Niko Price a few years ago. Like Lawler vs Price, I expected a dogfight out of Swanson vs Landwehr. Only for Cub to go out there and just smoke him in the first round.

He looked fucking great as well. To the point I watched it and found myself thinking ‘does he really have to retire?’ Looked sharper than he has in years. But then I remembered he’s 42 years old, has a ton of miles on the clock and Landwehr, as much as we all love him, was kind of ideal for him to look good against because he’s so wild and wide open. It was one of those fights where you knew Landwehr was gonna get cracked and if he survived then it was gonna be a war. But Cub hurt him early and often and never let him recover. Beautiful stuff. As good as he looked, I really hope this retirement sticks and he never fights again. In the UFC or anywhere else. Because this was about as perfect an end to his career as he could’ve dreamed of.

That’s pretty much it for WEC veterans in the UFC. There’s Rani Yahya, who I think is still technically on the roster, but he’s 41 himself and hasn’t fought in two years. Think he might be done. There are still ex WEC fighters knocking about like Anthony Pettis, Nate Diaz etc but, in the UFC, this was basically the last stand for the blue cage boys.

Lovely. Always seemed like one of the few true good eggs in the sport so it’s even better when a guy like that gets to go out on a positive note like this. Was really happy to see him get that moment to lay the gloves down and I’m glad they gave him a montage and all that good stuff. The only negative about the whole thing was Trump being on camera during it. And sat right next to Swanson’s wife and young children! Christ. It’s bad enough him being paraded out there at all with everything that’s going on, but to put basically the Epstein list headliner next to children? Fucking hell.

Thought Aaron Pico looked really good against Pitbull. Actually saw some criticism saying he was too measured. What? Sure, a finish would’ve been ideal but 1) Pitbull still clearly has a rock head and 2) given Pico’s history, including his loss to Murphy last time, I was happy to see him fight smarter here. He was way faster than Pitbull and I thought that was the main difference. But I also liked that he mixed in some takedowns which made his striking less predictable and kept Pitbull guessing. I still don’t see Pico going on some monster run now. Seen a bit of that talk since Saturday and it was a solid performance and a step in the right direction but it’s worth remembering this was also an ageing, slow as fuck Pitbull he beat. Pico’s entered the rankings at #13 now. Wouldn’t be surprised if they give him washed up Ortega or something. But I saw someone on Twitter suggest Pico vs Vallejos and…I never even considered that fight before and I reckon the matchmakers will avoid it and try to build both up separately. But fuck me, I’d love to see that.

Kevin Holland vs Randy Brown was pretty enjoyable for what it was. Although I could really do without Holland keep yapping during the fight. He does that shit a fair bit and it’s just annoying. I’m not turning on a MMA fight to watch a conversation in a cage, or two guys make friends in there. Rogan banging on about how “funny” it is gets on my tits as well. The action itself was good though and Holland won quite clearly, I thought. Seemed like Brown faded noticeably late and decided to just try and clinch the shit out of him, which meant a good fight ended really flat.

Gamrot vs Ribovics went about how I expected but even worse for Ribovics. From the second the fight was announced I felt like Gamrot was probably gonna be able to just bully him with his wrestling. I thought Ribovics would survive but get dominated to the scorecards. So Gamrot goes out and submits him. Sadly, as much as I like watching Ribovics, I think it’s clear his ceiling isn’t very high. He’ll still have some fun fights but he just doesn’t have enough about his overall game to go very far in the Lightweight division. Good bounce back win for Gamrot coming off the Oliveira loss. He took Ribovics to school here. Not sure who they match Gamrot up with next. Saint Denis? Moicano? He’s just called out Paddy on Twitter today. Can’t see that happening though. As for Ribovics, just keep giving him unranked stand up scrappers for a bit.

Suarez vs Loopy was a tad bittersweet for me because I like Loopy but I was happy to see Suarez win and get the finish. She really needed a performance like this after her last couple of fights. Her post-fight interview was heartbreaking. Had no idea she just lost her brother. To cancer of all things, after she beat cancer herself years ago.

It was nice to see Vicente Luque get the win and early finish against Kelvin Gastelum. Fully aware it means nothing. They’re both past their best at this point. But it was good to see Luque get in, get the finish and get out with little damage considering what we know he’s been through. Best he’s looked in a while but it’s a win over 2026 Gastelum so you have to put it in perspective. Nice finish though. As soon as he dropped Gastelum and followed him to the ground, you pretty much knew the D’Arce choke was on the way. It’s Luque’s go-to sub. Pretty much all his submission wins have been some variation of the D’Arce/anaconda.

Didn’t pay much attention to the Radtke vs Prado Fight Pass curtain jerker but caught Radtke’s post-fight interview where he shouted “FAGGOTS” into the mic. How charming. Anyone remember years ago when Dana went on some rant and used that word? There was backlash to it and he even made a point of saying he regretted using the slur. Fast forward to 2026, this jabroni proudly says it in the middle of the cage, stood there next to him is Joe Rogan who doesn’t even bat an eyelid with a big fuck off grin on his face. And then Anik just carries on about his business like it’s completely normal. No ‘sorry to any of our viewers who were offended’ bit or anything. Not that I expected it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not surprised. It’s just mad how accepted blatant bigotry, homophobia and racism is in the UFC now they feel bulletproof. But then again, they had Epstein’s tangerine best friend who’s currently committing war crimes sat cageside so what’s a homophobic slur in the grand scheme of things, right?

 

Got a bit of time off work coming up so I’m hopefully gonna get around to finally getting the threads up for this week’s Winnipeg show, 328, Rousey vs Carano etc. 

Edited April 15 by wandshogun09

[jimufctna24]

17 minutes ago, wandshogun09 said:

I’m not on board with this though. Just not buying the propaganda. Think a lot of people need to watch Hunt vs Bigfoot 1 again. Either that or a lot of people haven’t seen it in the first place and are just going with the Rogan and DC hyperbole. It was a nutty fight and it’s definitely the best Heavyweight fight we’ve seen in a while. But I think the division being as shit as it has been for so long has made this look slightly better than it actually was. It’s the wrong time to be bigging him up given the new headlines but Mark Hunt had a bunch of tremendous fights. Big Nog probably had even more. Nog vs Couture is awesome. Nog vs Sapp. Stipe vs JDS 1 is a forgotten banger. Cain vs Werdum is another. Lesnar vs Carwin, Fedor vs Fujita, Kongo vs Barry, Arlovski vs Browne, Barnett vs Nog 1. Fuck, as much as I hated the result, Mir vs Nog 2 with Mir coming back from a pasting to break Nog’s arm is absolutely mental. Fucking Frye vs Takayama! Not saying all these are better than Hokit vs Blaydes, I just think MMA fans have very short memories now and I’m not rating this #1 just because they told me to. It was great. It’d be on the list, probably somewhere in the top ten, but I’m not going along with them calling it #1 now like it’s an undebatable fact. Really don’t mean to put a negative spin on what was a stupidly fun fight but, man, I think recency bias is running wild here.

I would also add Fedor vs Cro Cop to that list, it may not have had the drama of some of the other fights, but it had its moments with Cro Cop stunning Fedor with a straight left, and it remains the highest quality heavyweight fight I've seen. Nog vs Cro Cop could be added too, as it featured one of the most stunning displays of courage and heart in MMA history, and Cro Cop looked like an absolute monster before the comeback. I amazingly haven't seen it, but Nog vs Herring 1 was meant to be an exceptional heavyweight fight too. 

I did watch the highlights of Hokit vs Blaydes, and while it was a very fun brawl, my memory is that Hunt vs Big Foot 1 was superior. 

[wandshogun09]

Yeah there’s just so many great Heavyweight fights in the history of MMA. It’s easy to forget because Heavyweight has been rotten for years now and the good times are getting further and further behind us. But HW used to be so much better. Nog vs Herring 1 was a corker from memory. First ever Pride Heavyweight title fight if I’m not mistaken as well. Couture vs Rizzo 1 is another great one from the early days. Cro Cop’s revenge on Gonzaga in Poland in 2015 is another forgotten gem. 

The fact we’ve been able to rattle off so many Heavyweight bangers from years ago and yet none of it’s been from the last decade says it all about how far the division has fallen. And that’s probably what flatters a fight like Hokit vs Blaydes even more. It’s so rare these days that you get anything good out of that wasteland of a division that when you do, people lose their minds. 

[Dai]

The Ulberg/Jiri KO was like something from a Rocky film. Unbelievable. And yeah, if hes said he showed mercy, then what a load of bollocks. Should just be honest and say he got complacent, and paid the ultimate price. All he had to do to win was keep doing the calf kicks on the good leg, and he wouldnt have lasted much longer I dont think. 

Classic DC line, mid fight ending punch, when in reply to Rogan saying Ulberg was in trouble, DC starts to say "and theres nothing he can do about it".

 

Costa looked great. I thought. And didnt gas or wilt from the heavy pressure. Good stuff. And yes, I heard the Trump thing too, Wand, was a bit surreal. 

 

Leaving aside all the non fight issues, I thought Hokit looked phenomenal. I think youre being way harsh on him, Wand. In a division full of shite, his hand speed and combinations were the best I think Ive seen in half a decade, if not longer. Then there was the clear toughness, and the ability to swim in deep water, and someone who pushes the aggression to this extent. I think he would be a problem for nearly everyone in this division, who most of the time seem like they are sleep walking for most of the fight. A proper shot in the arm to the division. I think he smokes Lewis, too, as theres no chance in hell that Lewis could withstand the heat like Blaydes did. He will crumble in 3 minutes if he doesnt land the big blow. 

Find it hilarious that Trump still loves Lewis. He has been dog shit for years, so still must have fond memories of him from his peak all those years back. Trump still clinging on to the glory days of when UFC allowed their fighters to have a personality, like we all are.

 

Thought the prelims and the Cub fight were enjoyable. Pico looked good,, but like you say, hard to judge a performance against Pitbull. Its clear that Pitbull is not as good as he was, but has shown to still be granite tough, so it went as well as possible for Pico. Not sure I really like his chances against most of the top 10 though. 

[wandshogun09]

I guess time will tell if I’m being harsh on Hokit but, even as weak as the Heavyweight division is these days, I’m not fully convinced. He’s fast for the weight and yeah throwing in combinations rather than one strike at a time, like a lot of the big slugs do, will help him. He’s got the wrestling background. He’s young. I did say he had positives going for him. I’m just not ready to declare him the second coming based on one decision win over a Curtis Blaydes who, let’s face it, hasn’t looked great in a while, is inconsistent at the best of times and isn’t the most durable of Heavyweights. Yet he still ate everything and the kitchen sink from Hokit and managed to go the distance and hurt him back a bunch of times after surviving a fresh Hokit’s initial volley. There are things that are gonna go in Hokit’s favour against a bunch of the current Heavyweights. I’m not saying he can’t beat Lewis or whoever. But the fact is he’s a bit undersized for the division and his lack of ability to put Blaydes away on Saturday, despite having about the best start imaginable, backs that up. His defence is bad as well. Sure, that can be said of most HWs, but that’s what I’m saying. It’s not like he’s particularly hard to hit and at Heavyweight, especially if you’re at the smaller end of the division, that’s always a risky game to play.

I actually do think he beats Lewis. I think Lewis is pretty much done anyway. And if Hokit uses his wrestling in that one he could make it so much easier and less risky. A lot of it is probably gonna depend on whether he listens to everyone sucking his dick now and lets it inflate his ego to the point he just stands and trades with Lewis. He could possibly still win that way but getting into a shootout when you don’t have to, against a bigger man who hits as hard as Lewis, is stupidity. And it’s the only chance Lewis has of winning. If Hokit goes the wrestling/ground and pound route I think Lewis probably just turtles up and accepts his fate.

Edited April 16 by wandshogun09