Ex-Champ Andrei Arlovski, UFC to Part Ways After 42-Bout Tenure

It’s the end of an era in the Ultimate Fighting Championship ’s heavyweight division.

Former champion Andrei Arlovski will not return to the Las Vegas-based promotion following his split-decision defeat against Martin Buday at UFC 303 on Saturday night. Arlovski confirmed the news via social media following an initial report from Ariel Helwani. The 45-year-old Arlovski completed his UFC deal on Saturday and is expected to sign elsewhere. He lost his last four Octagon appearances.

UFC CEO Dana White also stated that it was Arlovski’s last fight with the organization during the UFC 303 post-fight press conference.

“My chapter in the UFC is closed, but my book is not finished yet,” Arlovski wrote on Instagram.

Arlovski initially rose to prominence during his first UFC stint from 2000 to 2008, when he captured heavyweight gold and had a memorable trilogy with Tim Sylvia . “The Pit Bull” claimed the title with a 47-second submission of Sylvia at UFC 51 and defended the belt twice with first-round stoppages of Justin Eilers and Paul Buentello . He relinquished the belt in a rematch against Sylvia at UFC 59 and dropped a five-round verdict in their third meeting at UFC 61.

The Belarusian fought for multiple organizations outside the UFC from 2008 to 2013, including Affliction , EliteXC , Strikeforce and World Series of Fighting . While Arlovski wouldn’t challenge for the heavyweight title again in the UFC, he authored a couple lengthy winning streaks during a second stint that lasted a decade. The American Top Team product was able to remain competitive in fights into his 40s, even winning six of seven UFC appearances from May 2020 to April 2022.

Arlovski exits the UFC with the second most fights (42) and victories (23) in promotion history. Additionally, his 11 finishes are tied for No. 3 at all-time at heavyweight, his 10 knockdowns are tied for second and his 1,585 significant strikes landed are No. 1. He also has the most fight time among all heavyweight by a considerable margin with 6:49:58.