Jared Vanderaa is headed back to the regional scene following a rough run of UFC fights.
The heavyweight announced Monday that he has parted ways with the UFC on the heels of a five-fight losing streak, writing in an Instagram post that “I’m back to the regional and waiting to put a string of wins together and I’ll be back to where I know I belong.”
See Vanderaa’s full statement below.
As the year concludes and another one starts, going to state this has kinda been a bad year for me. Just not putting things together and achieving my goals so the start of the new year I’m back to the regional and waiting to put a string of wins together and I’ll be back to where I know I belong. I’m still ,for what I understand, in the pool and I’ll be ready when I am needed.
Vanderaa (12-10) mentioned that he expects to still be part of the UFC’s USADA drug testing program in anticipation of a potential return to the organization. Prior to joining the UFC, Vanderaa competed for several notable promotions around the world, including the LFA, EFC Worldwide, and King of the Cage.
The 30-year-old earned a UFC contract in 2020 with a first-round TKO of Harry Hunsucker on Dana White’s Contender Series. He made his UFC debut at a Fight Night event in February 2021, where he lost to Serghei Spivac.
Vanderaa scored his first UFC win with a unanimous decision victory over Justin Tafa the following May, but then closed out his 2021 campaign with a loss to Alexandr Romanov. He went on to compete four times in 2022, losing to Andrei Arlovski, Aleksei Oleinik, Chase Sherman, and Waldo Cortes-Acosta. He finishes his UFC run with a 1-6 record.