UFC London results: Carlos Ulberg calls for title shot after uninspiring win over Jan Blachowicz

Carlos Ulberg secured his eighth straight win on Saturday but despite his hopes to compete for gold, he’s likely still got some work to do after beating former champion Jan Blachowicz in the UFC London co-main event.

The three-round affair played out without much action as Ulberg attempted to stick to the outside while throwing one and two-punch combinations while Blachowicz was resigned to aggressively chasing him around the cage and chipping away with leg kicks. It wasn’t a barnburner by any means but in the end, the judges all scored the fight 29-28 with Ulberg getting the nod by unanimous decision.

“Very tough opponent obviously,” Ulberg said after his victory. “He’s on his way out but he’s here to prove a point. Always good to step in the octagon with him.

“Obviously, the longest win streak in the light heavyweight division. The only thing is the title shot for me. That’s all that matters.”

Constant forward pressure from Blachowicz had Ulberg on his backfoot early but the former light heavyweight champion wasn’t producing much offense. In return, Ulberg actually slammed home a straight right that popped Blachowicz directly in the chin to back him off.

Blachowicz reset and then started chopping away with leg kicks while staving off the speedy attacks coming back at him from Ulberg.

It appeared both fighters were wary to get too aggressive with Blachowicz and Ulberg willing to take a punch to then deliver one before backing out again. When Ulberg finally decided to move forward and launch a few strikes in succession, Blachowicz attempted to make him pay with some stiff punches of his own.

Blachowicz seemed content to chip away with leg kicks while Ulberg was peppering away with long jabs, although neither fighter’s offense was all that effective.

A close fight through 10 minutes, Ulberg tried to come after Blachowicz but the Polish veteran actually popped him with several solid counters as a result. A hard left hand from Blachowicz snapped Ulberg’s head back with the City Kickboxing fighter firing back with a few more straight punches of his own.

It really was anybody’s fight and Ulberg was more active but Blachowicz was throwing with better power. The activity apparently weighed more with the judges, who gave Ulberg the nod but it seems likely he’s still got some work to do before getting his chance to compete for a UFC title.

As for Blachowicz, he falls to 0-2-1 in his past three fights and it’s tough to say what’s next for the former champion at 42 years old.