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Paige VanZant made a name for herself by busting heads inside of a UFC octagon.
And while she may not be doing that anymore, her popularity sure hasn’t wavered.
In fact, VanZant is more popular than ever despite being out of the UFC for three years and not having fought in any promotion for two years.
VanZant started her UFC career in 2014 and quickly reeled off three straight wins to establish herself as a serious contender.
But then things got rocky.
She dropped her first UFC fight to future champ Rose Namajunas in December of 2015. That kicked off a string of three losses in four fights.
VanZant rebounded in 2019 with a victory over Rachael Ostovich. But she then missed nearly 18 months due to injury before dropping her fight with Amanda Ribas at UFC 251.
After leaving the UFC, VanZant tried her hand at bare knuckle boxing but lost both fights she competed in.
Despite two years away, Bare Knuckle FC President Dave Feldman believes she’ll return to the promotion at some point.
“I actually questioned that myself, but she had a conversation with a couple of the guys on the team and I don’t think that she’s moved on,” BKFC President Dave Feldman told MMA Fighting. “I think she wants one more crack at it. I know that I want to give her one more crack at it, so I think we’re going to have at least one more run there.”
VanZant doesn’t need to fight. She created a lucrative career for herself as an influencer and media personality. The blonde bombshell has over 3.2 million Instagram followers. And it’s largely for posts like this…
https://www.instagram.com/p/CviDNIEPv5I/?hl=en
VanZant posted a stunning array of photos in a black bikini on Friday and immediately went viral. The post quickly picked up over 10,000 likes and 100 comments.
Fighting or not, VanZant is a certified superstar.