Anthony Smith vs Carlos Ulberg added to UFC 303
Fresh off his upset victory over previously undefeated prospect Vitor Petrino at UFC 301 last month, former light heavyweight title challenger Anthony Smith is back with another big challenge. In a flurry of announcements earlier this week, UFC CEO Dana White revealed that Smith would make a quick turnaround at UFC 303 on June 29, where he will face another rising prospect contender, who is currently ranked 11th in the division.
Currently ranked 10th in the division and having won of his last three fights, Anthony Smith has momentum coming into the quick turnaround as he will look to put a stop to the Ulberg’s six-fight winning streak. Entering the UFC after a successful debut on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2020, Ulberg has suffered only one lone defeat in the promotion, and currently has five consecutive finishes, four of which came in the first round, most recently a :12-second knockout of Alonzo Menifield back in May.
With both fighters hovering around 10th in the rankings, this fight will not likely determine the next title contender at light heavyweight, but it could lead to a massive opportunity at the top of the division. One intriguing situation to watch is how Smith may interact with current light heavyweight champion Alex Periera. Following Smith’s win over Petrino, he was not shy about calling his shot against the reigning champion.
After Periera challenged Smith to a $50,000 grappling match, “Lionheart” accepted with no hesitation and insisted that he’s not the one who started the feud between the two of them. He may not line up for an immediate title shot win a over Ulberg, but if the two continue to cross paths and keep on their winning ways, there could be a path to seeing them fight at some point.
With all of the changes announced, here is the UFC 303 event fight card:
- Alex Periera vs Jiri Prochazka 2 (light heavyweight title)
- Diego Lopes vs Brian Ortega
- Mayra Bueno Silva vs Macy Chiasson
- Ian Machado Garry vs Michael Venom Page
- Carlos Ulberg vs Anthony Smith
- Cub Swanson vs Andre Fili
- Michelle Waterson-Gomez vs Gillian Robertson
- Carlos Hernandez vs Rei Tsuruya
- Joe Pyfer vs Marc-Andre Barriault
- Ricky Simon vs Vinicius Oliveira
- Payton Talbott vs Yanis Ghemmouri
- Andrei Arlovski vs Martin Buday
- Charles Jourdain vs Jean Silva
