Ray Longo, coach to Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling, has called for discussion about mental health issues in MMA, specifically targeting Jiri Prochazka's post-fight comments. Longo dismissed Prochazka's claim that he showed mercy to Carlos Ulberg, stating the Czech fighter simply made a serious mistake and appeared lost while making excuses. Carlos Ulberg reinforced this view, insisting Prochazka's mercy claim is nonsense and that fear was the real factor in his performance. Ulberg accused Prochazka of playing to the public to manufacture a rematch opportunity and noted that Prochazka didn't even congratulate him after the fight. Additionally, the post mentions that Donald Trump told Paulo Costa after his fight that he is "too handsome to be a fighter."
Ray Longo has waded into the controversy surrounding Jiri Prochazka's post-fight explanation, dismissing the Czech light heavyweight's claim that he showed mercy to Carlos Ulberg and calling for a broader conversation about mental health in mixed martial arts.
Longo, best known as the coach of Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling, was direct in his assessment. He argued that Prochazka did not show mercy — he simply made a serious mistake and appeared lost inside the cage, and the mercy narrative amounts to little more than excuse-making.
Prochazka, 33, enters this dispute as the number-two ranked light heavyweight in the world. The Czech striker carries a 32-6-1 record and is one of the division's most dangerous finishers, averaging 5.69 significant strikes per minute with 55 percent accuracy across his career. Standing six-foot-three with an 80-inch reach, he has long been considered a future champion.
Ulberg, known as "Black Jag," pushed back on Prochazka's version of events just as forcefully. The 35-year-old New Zealander out of City Kickboxing holds a 15-1-0 record and sits third in the light heavyweight rankings. Standing six-foot-four with a 77-inch reach, Ulberg is one of the division's most active strikers, landing 6.54 significant strikes per minute at 55 percent accuracy. He flatly called the mercy claim nonsense, pointing instead to fear as the genuine factor in Prochazka's performance. Ulberg also accused Prochazka of manufacturing a rematch narrative for public consumption, adding that Prochazka did not even extend the customary post-fight congratulations.
On a lighter note from the same event, Donald Trump told middleweight Paulo Costa — ranked thirteenth at 185 pounds with a 16-4-0 record — that he was too handsome to be a fighter.
Why it matters
- The dispute directly concerns the third and second-ranked light heavyweights, making any rematch conversation a divisional title picture conversation.
- Ulberg's accusation that Prochazka is manufacturing a rematch narrative adds a political dimension to how the UFC may weigh future matchmaking.
- Longo's mental health framing elevates the story beyond a typical post-fight argument and invites wider industry discussion.
