46-year-old UFC veteran Andrei Arlovski booked for tough BKFC debut

Former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski is closing in on 50 years old, but he’s not done fighting yet. He’s now set to debut with BKFC.

Arlovski, now 46, enjoyed two lengthy stints with the UFC. In fact, he has the second most fights in Octagon history, at 42.

The Belarusian’s second run with the UFC came to an end in 2024, after a split-decision loss to Martin Buday.

However, he was soon signed by Mike Perry’s Dirty Boxing promotion, where he scored his first finish in years, stopping Terrance Hodges with a cut.

Arlovski will now be dropping the gloves all together. The former UFC star recently signed with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC), and now has a date an opponent for his debut.

He will take on MMA veteran Geronimo Dos Santos at BKFC 76 in June 21. The promotion announced the booking on social media.

ANDREI ARLOVSKI IS LEAVING THE GLOVES BEHIND JUNE 21 IN TEXAS!#BKFC76 | June 21 | Tix on sale NOW at https://t.co/LJX5urGkRW pic.twitter.com/MNuebkLU5f

— Bare Knuckle FC (@bareknucklefc) May 11, 2025

Can Andrei Arlovski beat Geronimo Dos Santos in the BKFC ring?

Dos Santos, 44, shockingly has even more MMA experience than the former UFC champ Arlovski. The Brazilian has 71 pro fights behind him, compared to Arlovski’s 58.

Dos Santos also has some bare-knuckle experience under his belt, unlike Arlovski. In his recent BKFC debut, the MMA veteran knocked out another UFC veteran in Aleksei Oleinik (watch that here). It took him less than two minutes to knock his opponent out cold. Of course, it bears mentioning that Oleinik is a grappler, and that he is actually a year older than Arlovski, at 47. It was a grim reminder of how things tend to go when fighters compete past their prime. We may get another reminder of this when Arlovski and Dos Santos — who have a combined age of 90 years old — meet this June.

How do you think Arlovski will do in the BKFC ring?