Dayton, Oregon’s Paige VanZant Is Making Her Way Up The Ranks A Bit Too Quickly

Mixed martial arts bouts seem to thrive on conflict. It is conflict that has lead to some of the greatest fights the sport has ever seen. Back in the early 2000’s, it was a war of words between Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Wanderlei Silva that led to one of, if not the most, anticipated matchups of that era taking place. Verbal jabs from fighters like Tito Ortiz, Chael Sonnen, and Conor McGregor can send both media members and spectators into a frenzy. That’s not a bad thing either; in fact it’s pretty great. Many of the most memorable fights in the sport are a direct result of the prefight hype leading up to the event. But how do you create that drama for a fighter like Paige VanZant? A fighter whose smile has become as much a trademark as anything she does inside the cage. Growing up in Dayton, Oregon, VanZant was too busy competing in dance competitions to worry about martial arts. And now that she is focused on martial arts, it would seem she is too busy giving all the right answers to worry about stirring up controversy.

Paige VanZant is already a bona fide superstar. With just three UFC fights under her belt she will be headlining a card for the first time on December 10^th at UFC Fight Night 80. VanZant burst onto the scene back at UFC Fight Night 57 when she defeated Kailin Curran via TKO and took home fight of the night honors. The fight left a huge impression on UFC President Dana White, who has since praised the Oregon native for her fighting spirit and winning personality. It didn’t take long for Reebok to sign an exclusive deal with the young upstart. In fact, VanZant signed her deal with Reebok following her first ever UFC fight, even before then champion, Carla Esparza, had teamed up with the apparel giant. Many would point to VanZant’s  “it” factor for the quick deal with Reebok. Since this time VanZant has managed to rack up two more wins inside the cage, and it would appear that she is on the fast track for a shot at UFC strawweight champion, Joanna Jedrzejczyk (Joanna Champion, if you care to make it easy on yourself).

It would seem that the time is now for VanZant. In her next bout she will be taking a big step up in competition as she faces off against world-class striker Joanne Calderwood. A dominant win against a fighter the caliber of Calderwood could certainly put VanZant into title contention. If the chips fall just right VanZant could be just one fight away from a title shot. I am not here to say that VanZant wouldn’t be deserving of a title fight should things continue to go well for her. However, I will say a matchup with Joanna Champion seems like to sure fire way to bring down a young star that was just built up. VanZant would be outmatched in size, speed, power, and experience going up against the champion. After Jedrzejczyk’s last fight I can’t imagine anyone from VanZant’s camp being too confident in that matchup. If you missed that fight you should check it out below –

VanZant has all the tools to be a superstar who can transcend the sport. She is an amazing athlete, she is articulate, comfortable in front of the camera, very charismatic, and seems to understand how to market herself better than most fighters. Is a championship fight in her future? Undoubtedly. Is she ready to take on a champion the likes of Jedrzejczyk? Unlikely. The sky is the limit for Paige VanZant; hopefully she takes her time getting to the top.