Jiří Procházka surprised Carlos Ulberg allowed to keep UFC title while injured: 'I'm coming'

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jiří Procházka says he is surprised Carlos Ulberg has been allowed to keep the 205-pound title while out injured, given how he was treated when he was hurt as champion. Procházka made the comments in a live studio interview with Ariel Helwani on Wednesday, November 11, ten days before he headlines UFC Fight Night in Doha, Qatar, against Navajo Stirling.

'They already spoke with me to release the belt'

"Yeah, a little bit surprised, because when I was injured and I didn't fight, they already spoke with me to release the belt and all these things," Procházka said, according to clips Helwani posted on X.

"I think Carlos tried to keep that belt with everything he has, and I really don't care. I wish him all the best and to be healthy, but I'm coming."

In November 2022, Procházka vacated the light heavyweight title after a severe right shoulder injury forced him out of his planned UFC 282 rematch with Glover Teixeira. The UFC said at the time that he had "elected to vacate his title", and Procházka wrote on Instagram that he made the decision "after consulting with UFC management" because he did not want to hold up the division. Jan Błachowicz and Magomed Ankalaev fought for the vacant belt instead.

Ulberg's injury

Ulberg won the title by knocking out Procházka with punches at 3:45 of the first round at UFC 327 in April 2026, but tore the ACL in his right knee during the fight. After surgery, the New Zealander said in August, at a news conference in Shanghai ahead of UFC Fight Night 286, that he aims to return and defend the belt early in 2027.

"I'm ready to get myself healthy again so that I can come and defend my title early next year," Ulberg said then, MMA Junkie reported. He added that his priority was not to re-injure the knee by coming back too soon.

Why he hesitated over Stirling

Procházka also explained why he had reservations about taking the fight with the unbeaten Stirling.

"Everybody knows he's a young guy, he's on a winning streak, he's ranked low, and he's going really fast. It's risky for somebody in a position like me," he said.

He said he had grown frustrated trying to find an opponent among the top light heavyweights. "Ankalaev didn't want to fight. Costa didn't want to fight... I was a little bit pissed off from the communication with all these guys at light heavyweight because nobody wanted to fight."

Procházka noted that Stirling trains with the champion. "Stirling is a sparring partner of Ulberg. They know me, but I think they're working with the old version of Jiří. I think they will prepare for another man."

Ankalaev, for his part, said on X on November 9 that nobody in the division's top five wants to fight him and floated a move to heavyweight.

Nettles and pain

The Czech also discussed his well-known ritual of beating himself with stinging nettles. "It's painful, and for me, it's like a ceremony. It's a ceremonial thing to clean myself with these nettles," he said. "I started to use that because I wanted to feel this pain. Then I started to realize the history of the nettles, how they used that as a spark for immunity and to be much stronger and face the pain."

Procházka vs Stirling headlines the UFC Fight Night card at ABHA Arena in Doha on Saturday, November 21.