UFC St Louis: Carlos Ulberg gets shot at rankings against Alonzo Menifield after return delays

Carlos Ulberg returns to the UFC octagon this Sunday in St Louis against Alonzo Menifield. Photo / Getty Images

It’s been a strange six months for Carlos Ulberg.

Last November, the surging UFC fighter looked to have secured his first opportunity to crack the light heavyweight Top 15 when he locked in a bout against former title challenger Dominick Reyes.

That bout was scheduled for January 21 in Toronto. However, it was pushed back to the March 31 card in Atlantic City as Ulberg needed more time to recover from a foot injury.

However, two months out from the March date, Reyes withdrew from the fight due to blood clots. Alonzo Menifield – ranked slightly higher than Reyes – stepped up to the plate, but the fight was again delayed.

On Sunday, Ulberg will finally get his chance at the rankings when he and Menifield square off in St Louis.

“It’s kept me on my toes,” Ulberg told the Herald of his year so far.

“It’s allowed me to stay sharp. I wasn’t able to go out and have a holiday, so in that sense it was good; it kept me at the gym. I stayed in the gym, put the honest work in, and just built from there.

“I guess in some ways it’s a bit of a blessing. But we’re here now, we’re going up against a ranked opponent and this is exactly what we’re after and we’re in this position, so we’ll go get that money.”

Menifield holds the position of No 11 in the light heavyweight rankings, is unbeaten in his last five bouts and three of his last four wins have come before the final bell.

The American has shown a solid skillset; while he is largely reliant on his punching power and athleticism, he has shown he can mix in his wrestling throughout his UFC career.

“This one, he could definitely bring a challenge that I need,” Ulberg said.

“This is going to be a good awakening for me. This will be a good challenge for me to understand that this is a big step up, because once you get into those top 15 rankings, you’re playing with the big sharks now.

“Coming up against someone like Alonzo, he’s a heavy puncher, he’s explosive, but I feel that my timing is going to be the thing that’s going be able to off-put that; my timing and my speed.”

As Ulberg has made his name in the UFC, Menifield has been among the opponents on his radar as potential rivals in the future. After his first-round knockout over Nicolae Negumereanu at Madison Square Garden in New York in 2022, Ulberg indicated his desire to fight Menifield at some point.

Now riding a five-fight winning streak with four finishes, including the first submission of his career in his most recent bout last September, Ulberg will get to face that challenge – one that he believes will test him both physically and mentally.

“Stylistically, he’s a good fight for me,” Ulberg said.

“He will bring the fight, for sure. He’s got the power, he will touch me a bit and when you start to feel the power, it’s going to be up to me to figure out whether I’m going to push forward and go with it or try to adjust to his game plan.

“I’m going to try to stick to my game plan and I know that he’s going to bring the war. I believe it’s going to be fight of the night.”

Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.