Despite fighting for the UFC women’s featherweight title at last weekend’s UFC 259 event, Megan Anderson no longer has a contract with the organization.
MMA Junkie confirmed with Anderson’s management team at Paradigm Sports that she fought at UFC 259 in the final fight of her contract and has already fulfilled her obligations with the promotion. MMA Fighting first reported on Anderson’s contract status.
While Anderson (11-5 MMA, 3-3 UFC) is free to sign a new deal with the promotion, if offered, the former interim featherweight champion of Invicta FC plans to take a break before making her next move.
Paradigm Sports representative Tim Simpson confirmed via text message that Anderson is treating some persistent injuries that they will leave to heal before planning their next move.
Anderson’s current UFC run ends after a season of six fights with the promotion that began with a decision loss in June 2018 to former UFC female bantamweight champion Holly Holm. His last five fights with the organization ended in the first round, including victories for Cat Zingano, Zarah Fairn and Norma Dumont, as well as defeats for Felicia Spencer and Nunes.
The 31-year-old Australian is currently in 5th place in the last USA TODAY Sports / MMA Junkie women’s ranking.
Although the future of the UFC women’s featherweight division is often questioned, as the promotion has no official ratings for the weight category and only has a handful of 145-pound fighters under contract, the UFC authorities have publicly insisted and backstage that no determination was made to rule out the division at this point.