Ray Longo, trainer of Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling, addressed mental health concerns in MMA after Jiri Prochazka's post-fight excuse. Longo dismissed Prochazka's claim of showing mercy as the fighter being lost and making a poor excuse after a bad performance. Carlos Ulberg stated that Prochazka's mercy claim was driven by fear and accused him of playing to the audience. Ulberg noted Prochazka didn't approach him after the fight and suggested everything Prochazka does is calculated for public reaction. Ulberg believes the mercy narrative was an attempt to secure a rematch. Additionally, Donald Trump reportedly told Paulo Costa after his fight that he is too handsome to be a fighter.
Ray Longo and Carlos Ulberg have both gone on the record to dispute Jiri Prochazka's post-fight claim that he showed mercy during his recent loss to Ulberg, with the veteran trainer calling it a poor excuse and Ulberg suggesting the Czech fighter was motivated by fear rather than compassion.
Longo, the longtime trainer of Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling, addressed the mental health dimension that has surrounded the narrative but was direct in his assessment. In his view, Prochazka was not acting out of mercy — he was simply lost inside the fight and reached for a convenient explanation afterward.
Prochazka, 33, holds a 32-6-1 record and is ranked second in the light heavyweight division. The Czech fighter out of Jetsaam Gym Brno stands six-foot-three with an 80-inch reach and is one of the division's most aggressive strikers, landing 5.69 significant strikes per minute at 55 percent accuracy. Despite that firepower, the mercy narrative following his defeat has drawn sharp pushback.
Ulberg, ranked third at light heavyweight, was equally dismissive. The 35-year-old New Zealander from City Kickboxing carries a 15-1-0 record and noted that Prochazka never approached him after the fight — behavior he found telling. Ulberg, who stands six-foot-four with a 77-inch reach and lands 6.54 significant strikes per minute, accused Prochazka of being calculated in his public statements and argued the mercy claim was engineered specifically to manufacture a rematch opportunity.
Why it matters
- Prochazka sits at No. 2 in the light heavyweight rankings while Ulberg holds the No. 3 spot, making the rematch conversation carry genuine divisional weight.
- If the mercy narrative is widely discredited, it weakens any leverage Prochazka might use to fast-track a second fight.
- The clash between two high-volume Orthodox strikers — Ulberg at 6.54 strikes per minute against Prochazka's 5.69 — means any rematch would likely be just as explosive on paper.
Separately, Donald Trump reportedly told middleweight Paulo Costa, who owns a 16-4-0 record and ranks 13th at 185 pounds, that he is too handsome to be a fighter following Costa's most recent bout.
