Lando Vannata

Landon Anthony Vannata A professional competitor since 2012, he has formerly competed for the RFA and Pancrase.

Early years Vannata was born in Neptune, New Jersey and at the age of 13, began wrestling and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Vannata later wrestled at an NCAA Division I University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, but dropped out after one semester. After dropping out, he left for Albuquerque, New Mexico, to join JacksonWink Academy After an exciting back-and-forth fight, and almost finishing Ferguson with strikes in the first round he lost by submission in the second round. Both participants were awarded a Fight of the Night bonus.

Vannata faced John Makdessi on December 10, 2016, at UFC 206 He won the fight via highlight reel spinning heel kick knockout in the first round and was awarded a Performance of the Night bonus.

Vannata faced David Teymur on March 4, 2017, at UFC 209. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. The fight was awarded Fight of the Night honors.

Vannata was expected to face Abel Trujillo on October 7, 2017, at UFC 216. However, Trujillo was removed from the card on August 14 for undisclosed reasons and replaced by Bobby Green. Vannata struck Green with a knee while Green was a grounded opponent, which caused referee Herb Dean to deduct one point from Vannata. The judges handed down a split draw after three rounds with score of 29-27-27-29 and 28-28. This fight earned him Fight of the Night award.

Vannata was linked to a fight with Gilbert Burns on April 14, 2018, at UFC on Fox 29. However, the pairing never materialized as Vannata was unable to accept the fight for this date/event as he was still rehabilitating a recent arm injury.

Vannata faced Drakkar Klose on July 7, 2018, at UFC 226. He lost the fight by unanimous decision.

Vannata faced Matt Frevola on November 3, 2018, at UFC 230. The bout ended in a majority draw. Shortly after the fight, Vannata announced that he became a free agent. In the beginning of 2019, Vannata announced that he had signed a new, four-fight contract with the UFC.

Vannata faced promotional newcomer Marcos Rosa Mariano on February 10, 2019, at UFC 234. He won the fight via a submission in round one.

Vannata faced Marc Diakiese on September 28, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 160. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Vannata faced Yancy Medeiros on February 15, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 167. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

A rematch with Bobby Green took place on August 1, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 173. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award.

Vannata moved down to featherweight and faced Mike Grundy at UFC 262 on May 15, 2021. He won his 145 lb debut via split decision.

Vannata was scheduled to face Tucker Lutz on November 13, 2021, at UFC Fight Night 197. However, the contest was cancelled in late October as Lutz was removed from the event in favor of another bout.

Vannata faced Charles Jourdain on April 23, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 205. He lost the fight via a guillotine choke in round one.

Vannata was scheduled to face Andre Fili on September 17, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 210. However, Vannata was forced to pull from the event due to injury.

Vannata faced Daniel Zellhuber on April 15, 2023, at UFC on ESPN 44. He lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Vannata was scheduled to face Mike Breeden on August 12, 2023, at UFC on ESPN 51. However, Vannata pulled out in early August and was replaced by Terrance McKinney.

Vannata was scheduled to face James Llontop on April 27, 2024, at UFC on ESPN 55. However, Vannata pulled out for unknown reasons, was replaced by Gabriel Green and subsequently replaced by Chris Padilla.

After a three-year absence, Vannata faced Darrius Flowers on April 4, 2026 at UFC Fight Night 272. At the weigh-ins, Flowers weighed in at 156.6 pounds, half a pound over the lightweight non-title fight limit, so the bout proceeded at catchweight with Flowers forfeiting 20 percent of his purse which went to Vannata. He lost the fight by technical knockout in the second round.

On May 29, 2026, it was reported that Vannata was removed from the UFC roster.

Personal life Vannata has said that his mother is Jewish. During a July 2026 visit to Jerusalem, he put on tefillin for the first time at the Western Wall.

Championships and accomplishments Mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship Fight of the Night (Four times) & Ranked #3 Newcomer of the Year 2017: Ranked #7 Fight of the Year Bloody Elbow 2016 Newcomer of the Year 2016 Knockout of the Year 2020 August Fight of the Month MMADNA.nl 2016 Knockout of the Year vs. John Makdessi at UFC 206 Combat Press 2016 Knockout of the Year

Mixed martial arts record Loss

Darrius Flowers TKO (slam and punches) UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs. Duncan

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

Daniel Zellhuber Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Holloway vs. Allen

Kansas City, Missouri, United States Loss

Charles Jourdain Submission (guillotine choke) UFC Fight Night: Lemos vs. Andrade

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Mike Grundy Decision (split) UFC 262

Houston, Texas, United States Loss

Bobby Green Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Shahbazyan

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | Win

Yancy Medeiros Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Anderson vs. Błachowicz 2

Rio Rancho, New Mexico, United States Loss

Marc Diakiese Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Hermansson vs. Cannonier

Copenhagen, Denmark Win

Marcos Rosa Mariano Submission (kimura) UFC 234

Melbourne, Australia Draw

Matt Frevola Draw (majority) UFC 230

New York City, New York, United States Loss

Drakkar Klose Decision (unanimous) UFC 226

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Draw

Bobby Green Draw (split) UFC 216

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Loss

David Teymur Decision (unanimous) UFC 209

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

John Makdessi KO (spinning wheel kick) UFC 206

Toronto, Ontario, Canada Loss

Tony Ferguson Submission (brabo choke) UFC Fight Night: McDonald vs. Lineker

Sioux Falls, South Dakota, United States Win

Ramico Blackmon TKO (punches) Rocky Mountain Rubicon 2

Pueblo, Colorado, United States Win

Chad Curry TKO (punches and elbows) RFA 32

Prior Lake, Minnesota, United States Win

Santana-Sol Martinez Submission (arm-triangle choke) High Altitude Face Off 7

Alamosa, Colorado, United States Win

Bruce Reis Submission (heel hook) Jackson's MMA Series 13

Pueblo, Colorado, United States Win

Mitsuyoshi Nakai Submission (rear-naked choke) Pancrase 255

Tokyo, Japan Win

J. P. Reese Decision (split) Xtreme FC 25

Albuquerque, New Mexico, United States Win

Antonio Ramirez Submission (rear-naked choke) Kamikaze Fight League 2

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico Win

Adrian Apodaca TKO (punches) Mescalero Warrior Challenge 2

Mescalero, New Mexico, United States Kickboxing record