UFC Sacramento: Paige VanZant's Star Turn
After suffering the worst loss of her career, Paige VanZant has complete her career year in fashion at UFC Sacramento on Saturday against Michelle Waterson.
Going into 2016, “12 Gauge” Paige VanZant was in the roughest patch of her career. The UFC’s young upstart, with Hollywood looks and magnetic personality, had been stopped in her first UFC main event in a bout where she was severely outclassed.
Before her next fight was even announced, she found herself in headlines again for an altercation that occurred between herself and Ronda Rousey in which the latter spewed vitriol over the fact that VanZant had congratulated Holm on her victory over Rousey in November. VanZant would spend most of the year stating that a bout between the two over the incident was not in her plans, but most recently proposed that she would face “Rowdy” in a flyweight bout if a contest was possible.
Instead of getting back in the cage as soon as possible, she took an unexpected hiatus to participate on Dancing with the Stars. VanZant represented herself well, becoming a fan favorite and finishing second to the inspirational Nyle DiMarco. VanZant boosted her already popular status and brought new fans to the sport to watch her return to the UFC in August in a nationally televised bout against Bec Rawlings.
There were plenty of questions, was VanZant still committed to fighting after her loss? Would she still be interested in competition after gaining more opportunities outside of fighting? “12 Gauge” answered all those questions with a highlight reel switch-kick knockout over Rawlings in the second round after having lost the first.
Despite having only one fight in 2016, there is no question that this has been a career year for VanZant. Her performance on the show has only helped MMA in becoming more mainstream and her next bout against Michelle Waterson is a perfect opportunity for a passing of the guard event in her adopted home of Sacramento.
Earlier on the main card, former world champion and MMA legend Urijah Faber will compete in his final bout. Faber has long been the standard of excellence for the lighter weight classes, but December will see two of his youngest stars compete in the biggest fights of their careers. While “PVZ” will face Waterson on Saturday, his protege Cody Garbrandt will be challenging long-time rival Dominick Cruz for the world bantamweight title at the end of the month.
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With Faber set for a career outside the cage, VanZant is poised to launch her own star into stratosphere. The attention on Saturday’s main event is expected to be high as both VanZant and Waterson are personable and compete with tenacity. From the casual fan standpoint, both fighter’s past in commercial modeling is likely to bring in fans who don’t usually tune in.
In Waterson, VanZant will face a veteran of women’s MMA who has had nearly twice as many professional fights. One question facing “The Karate Hottie” is if she is large enough to compete at strawweight. Her biggest career victories have come at atomweight, winning the world championship and defending it at a weight class that is 10 pounds lower. VanZant is likely to walk into the cage noticeably bigger than Waterson, a crucial advantage as the bout wears on.
At this point in VanZant’s career, a victory over Waterson will not have fans clamoring for a fight against champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk in her next outing. But, having her hand raised in consecutive bouts will go a long way in getting her marquee match-ups in 2017. If she can continue on her current pace of development, then “12 Gauge” will be taking her own shot at the division’s elite soon enough.
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