SCRAPP! FIGHT MAGAZINE
September - 2016
13
more of the flashy junk’, ask-
ing her to stay in the frame of
standard striking techniques,
traditional combinations, but
the gentlemen were pleasantly
corrected by ‘12 Gauge’ in the
second round, finishing the
tough Rawlings by that same
jumping switch kick used in the
first round, that finally lead to
the knockout.
What’s next for Paige?
After a successful showing at
DWTS in 2016, where Paige
shook her hips all the way to
the finals of that season, finish-
ing second overall, increasing
her popularity and name rec-
ognition, it seems like this year
is starting in favor of VanZant.
Former UFC fighter, now UFC
commentator and Fox panel
analyst Brian Stann asked PVZ
in the Octagon what was next
for her, to which she answered,
“I want to get on that Decem-
ber card in Sacramento..”.
PVZ is now the strawweight
with the most finishes in the
divisions history (3), according
to long time UFC commentator
Mike Goldberg.
We are just starting to see her
new find celebrity take her
to new heights, and if UFC
choose to put a little more pro-
motional power behind her in
her next bout, I foresee a fan-
tastic buildup in the future in a
matchup with, let say, ‘The Ka-
rate Hottie’ Michelle Waterson.
UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby,
who handles the lower weight
classes for the UFC – If we
step into his shoes for just a
moment, a decision needs to
be made, is it time for an im-
mediate push to face a top
five strawweight again after
very recently getting served a
large plate of humble pie from
‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas in her
fight before the one leading
up to this one against Bec, or
maybe, as hinted earlier in this
piece, facing ‘The Karate Hot-
tie’ in her next fight in Sacra-
mento, hometown of the gym
she trains out of, Team Alpha
Male, would be a good place
to pour more fuel to a fire that
is already making itself known.
Let’s keep PVZ away from a
sink or swim matchup with the
absolute elite of the division,
hindering the momentum and
hype PVZ got from this com-
ing out party past Saturday.
Bring her up slowly, let her face
someone with similar rank, and
a matchup between #10 vs
#11 Strawweights, PVZ vs Wa-
terson, would be just that.
It probably won’t grant her a
title fight if VanZant would po-
tentially win that hypothetical
contest, most likely, unless UFC
wants to continue this trend
we have seen a lot of recently
where the merits for a title shot
is not as equal important to
one fighters popularity among
fans.
The next move for VanZant will
be decided by the UFC, and
most likely we will hear some-
thing soon to please the fans
waiting to hear what’s next for
their star, but after a Perfor-
mance of the Night awarded
showing since returning from
DWTS, I for one can honestly
say:
– It’s good to have you back
Paige, where you belong.
Waterson (Esther Lin/Invicta FC)
