Andrei Arlovski has an opponent for his 37th UFC appearance.
MMA Fighting’s Mike Heck confirmed with sources that the former heavyweight champion is scheduled to fight Jared Vanderaa (12-6) at UFC 271 on Feb. 12 at Toyota Center in Houston. The bout was first announced by Vanderaa’s management.
Arlovski (32-20, 2 NC) fought three times in 2021, losing to Tom Aspinall in February before bouncing back with unanimous decision victories against Chase Sherman and Carlos Felipe. The 42-year-old veteran has won four of his past five fights and his UFC record stands at 21-14 with one no-contest.
Vanderaa has alternated wins and losses since earning a contract on Dana White’s Contender Series in November 2020 with a first-round TKO of Harry Hunsucker. Inside the octagon, Vanderaa has sandwiched a unanimous decision win over Justin Tafa with TKO losses to Alexander Romanov and Serghei Spivac.
UFC 271 will be headlined by a middleweight title rematch between champion Israel Adesanya and former champion Robert Whittaker.