Carlos Ulberg's victory marks the 20th UFC championship won by fighters from Australia and New Zealand, though officially recorded as 19 due to UFC incorrectly removing title status from the Whittaker vs. Romero rematch. The analysis shows Australia and New Zealand lead all continents and regions with one title victory per 1.6 million population, ahead of North America (2.3 million), South America (6.3 million), Russia and CIS (8.3 million), and Western Europe (11.6 million). The region's combat sports success extends to boxing with current and former champions Jay Opetaia, Joseph Parker, George Kambosos, and Tim Tszyu. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Australia placed 4th with 18 gold medals while New Zealand ranked 11th with 10 medals despite having only 5 million people. The analysis attributes these achievements to well-developed cultural life and world-class sports science, citing UFC PI Director of Sports Science Roman Fomin's assessment of Australian sports science as among the best globally.
