Dominick Reyes flirted with a pro football career, so he knows what it means to be an athlete in the UFC. In that regard, Reyes thinks upcoming opponent Carlos Ulberg stacks up against the very best.
And better than arguably the best fighter of all time.
“Carlos is the best athlete I will face in the light heavyweight division,” Reyes told Submission Radio.
Considering Reyes once went a hard-fought five rounds with Jon Jones, a three-time light heavyweight champion that recently retired with a heavyweight title in his possession, it’s fair to ask if he was including “Bones” in that statement.
“Yes, way more,” Reyes answered. “Way more. [Ulberg] moves his feet extremely well. He is very quick, he’s very powerful, but it’s just his movement. He can move like me. He’s an extremely good athlete, he’s very balanced with everything he does, he’s kind of safe, he fights very safe. Kind of fights to not lose as opposed to win as he’s moved up in competition, but he’s a quality opponent, I’m very, very, very much looking forward to fighting Carlos.
“He’s quite the test. He’s got a great left hook and he’s good with that lead hand. He’s real good with that lead hand and he’s light on his feet and he kicks well. It’s going to be a very technical fight. I’m going to have to be very patient because he’s so patient that he will almost lose a fight, that’s how patient he is.”
Reyes, 35, is in the midst of a career resurgence. After losing a narrow decision to Jones at UFC 247, Reyes went on to lose his next three fights, all by knockout. It looked like that was the end of the road for “The Devastator,” but he has since rebounded with a trio of knockouts of his own to make an unexpected climb back into title contention.
Should he defeat Ulberg and earn another championship opportunity, Reyes already knows he’ll be more prepared.
“It’s kind of the same thing but this time it doesn’t feel as, like, ‘It’s a title shot! Yeah!” Reyes said. “It’s just another day in the office, let’s go. Let’s do this, go to work, instead of there’s so much pressure, so many things. It’s just like, ‘Naw, go to work. Do what you do. Let’s finish the mission.’”
Reyes and Ulberg were previously scheduled to compete at UFC 297 in January 2024, which would have occurred under much different circumstances as Reyes had yet to halt his four-fight losing streak at that time. An Ulberg injury changed plans and possibly gave Reyes his chance to right the ship before their inevitable in-cage meeting.
Now scheduled for UFC Perth on Sept. 28, Reyes is thrilled to finally get to fight Ulberg, especially considering what could be on the line.
“I was like, heck yeah,” Reyes said. “We were supposed to fight before, it’s kind of been a long time coming. He’s No. 3, top 3. You take out the top three guys, you’re in line for a title shot, especially that will be four finishes in a row for me? It’s exciting.”
“One more, let’s go,” Reyes added. “The champion everybody wants to see become champion. I’ve got a lot of juice behind me right now. I’ve got a lot of love from the MMA world on my back and I don’t plan on disappointing anyone, especially myself.”
