Alex Pereira vacates light heavyweight title as Prochazka-Ulberg set to headline UFC 327
alex pereira has vacated the UFC light heavyweight title, and Jiri Prochazka and Carlos Ulberg will fight for the vacant championship at UFC 327, which will headline on April 11 at Kaseya Center in Miami.
Dana White announced the 205-pound title fight on Friday and said he will announce the fights for the upcoming White House event "this week. " White did not comment on Pereira's title reign ending. Pereira's team did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Alex Pereira vacates light heavyweight title
The belt was vacated after alex pereira signaled interest in moving up to the heavyweight division and previously requested a move to heavyweight. Pereira first captured the light heavyweight championship by defeating Jiri Prochazka at UFC 295. He then lost the title to Magomed Ankalaev in May 2025, and later reclaimed it by taking down Ankalaev in the first round at UFC 320. If Pereira officially moves to heavyweight, he would attempt to become the UFC's first three-division champion.
Prochazka and Ulberg to fight for vacant belt at UFC 327
Jiri Prochazka and Carlos Ulberg will meet for the vacant light heavyweight title on April 11 at Kaseya Center in Miami. Prochazka, a former light heavyweight champion with a 32-5-1 record, was forced to vacate the title in 2022 because of an injury. He challenged Pereira for the belt twice, in 2023 and 2024, losing both bouts second-round knockout. Since his second loss to Pereira, Prochazka has recorded back-to-back finishes against Jamahal Hill and Khalil Rountree Jr.
Ulberg's rise: from 2020 signing to a September knockout
Carlos Ulberg, who lives and trains out of New Zealand, signed with the UFC in 2020 and, after losing his UFC debut in 2021, has since put together a long winning stretch — nine in a row — and is coming off a first-round knockout of Dominick Reyes in September. Ulberg will enter UFC 327 having climbed steadily through the light heavyweight ranks since his 2020 signing.
White’s backing and the promotion’s next moves
UFC president and CEO Dana White expressed support for Pereira moving divisions and spoke about him publicly on Feb. 21: "He's one of those guys that always steps up and does whatever we need him to. Whatever that guy wants to do, we would work with him. " White also said he will announce the fights for the upcoming White House event "this week, " tying the title announcement to the promotion's near-term scheduling plans.
With the light heavyweight belt vacant, Prochazka and Ulberg now headline UFC 327 on April 11 at Kaseya Center in Miami. Officials have said the 205-pound title will be on the line that night; recovery, confirmation of Pereira's next move, and the full fight card for the White House event are the next confirmed items the promotion has said it will address this week.
