Ray Longo, coach to Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling, criticized Jiri Prochazka's mental state and post-fight excuse about showing mercy, calling it a cop-out for a bad performance. Carlos Ulberg directly disputed Prochazka's claim of showing mercy, stating that fear and hesitation were what actually stopped Prochazka, not compassion. Ulberg accused Prochazka of playing to the public and creating excuses to justify a rematch, adding that Prochazka didn't even approach him after the fight. Ulberg believes Magomed Ankalaev will defeat Prochazka convincingly. The post also mentioned tension at City Kickboxing gym between Israel Adesanya and Ulberg, with neither supporting each other's recent performances, and noted that Donald Trump told Paulo Costa he's "too beautiful to be a fighter."
Carlos Ulberg fired back at Jiri Prochazka following the light heavyweight's post-fight comments, while veteran coach Ray Longo added his own sharp criticism of the Czech contender's mindset in the days after their bout.
Longo, widely known as the longtime trainer of Merab Dvalishvili and former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling, called Prochazka's claim of showing mercy a cop-out, arguing it masked what was simply a poor performance. Prochazka, 33, carries a 32-6-1 record and holds the number-two ranking in the light heavyweight division. Fighting out of Jetsaam Gym Brno, the six-foot-three Czech is one of the division's most aggressive strikers, averaging 5.69 significant strikes per minute at 55 percent accuracy.
Ulberg pushed back harder still, rejecting the mercy narrative entirely. In his view, it was fear and hesitation — not compassion — that stopped Prochazka from pressing forward. Ulberg accused Prochazka of playing to the public and building a pretext for a rematch, and noted that Prochazka did not approach him after the fight concluded. Ulberg also stated his belief that Magomed Ankalaev will defeat Prochazka convincingly when the two meet.
The story carries a subplot involving City Kickboxing, where tension has reportedly surfaced between Israel Adesanya and Ulberg, with neither fighter publicly supporting the other's recent showings. Adesanya, a 36-year-old Nigerian-born middleweight ranked eighth in his division, holds a 24-6-0 record and has long been the gym's marquee name, averaging 4.03 significant strikes per minute across his career.
On a lighter note, middleweight Paulo Costa — ranked 13th at 185 pounds with a 16-4-0 record and an eye-catching 6.26 significant strikes per minute — apparently drew a memorable compliment from Donald Trump, who reportedly told the Brazilian he was too beautiful to be a fighter.
Why it matters
- Prochazka's public credibility takes a hit if his post-fight reasoning continues to draw pushback from opponents and coaches alike
- Ulberg's pointed comments effectively close the door on any goodwill leading into a potential rematch conversation
- Tension at City Kickboxing between two of the gym's prominent fighters adds an internal dynamic worth monitoring
