Paige VanZant has now headlined two events in the UFC and in both events she was defeated, first by Rose Namajunas at UFC Fight Night 80 and now to Michelle Waterson at UFC On Fox 22. Setbacks aside, the fighter still believes that her future is bright and that the UFC Women’s Strawweight Title will be around her waist one day.
“I was meant for the spotlight and I’m gonna continue to be in the spotlight,” VanZant said at the UFC On Fox 22 post-fight press conference. “And I will be back and I’m gonna have the belt one day. I’m 22 years old. I have a long time.”
However, some believe that outside opportunities, like her past appearances on ABC’s Dancing With The Stars, could prevent VanZant from getting the gold. VanZant disagrees.
“I feel my opportunities are endless,” VanZant said. “I’m definitely gonna be fighting for the UFC for a long time. I’m very young; no injuries. So I’m gonna get back into it. But of course if other things come up, I’m gonna pursue those as well. I have a lot of passions in the world and I’m not gonna limit myself to one thing. I have a lot of big things working outside of fighting, so I’m gonna pursue those for a little while. I definitely need a vacation, so I’m planning that right now. And then straight back to work, back in the gym getting ready for my last fight. Obviously, I took a break for ‘Dancing With The Stars’ and I came back and I knocked somebody out (Bec Rawlings), so I’m very good at balancing my outside factors. I have the best team in the world. I’m very smart. I could have done anything I wanted to and I chose to fight. And I’m gonna continue to balance my schedule. I got caught. I’m not gonna overthink it. I need to work on my jiu-jitsu and that’s it.”
VanZant also has offers from WWE, among others.
