When Paige VanZant completed the final fight on her UFC contract, she was excited to really test free agency for the first time in her career.
VanZant signed her first UFC deal when she was just 19, so she was never really offered the chance to test the free market to find out its true value in martial arts. Shortly a month after her most recent fight, she shook the world when she decided to sign an exclusive contract with upstart promotion Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, where she will put her MMA gloves on top of each other and participate in one of the fastest growing yet brutal leagues in the world.
According to VanZant, she was familiar with the BKFC, but it was play-by-play man Sean Wheelock, who had previously worked with her during a commentary performance, who introduced her to the idea of signing with the promotion.
“I had no idea they were going to be such a great player in the game,” VanZant told MMA Fighting. ‘Once I heard, talking to my husband, I was like I think I want to draw with her. We were still in that negotiation process, I had really not heard their final offer. It was more than just what I felt they offered me financially.
‘It was the opportunity I was excited about. I’ve been a fan of her sport and it’s something I can really show my striking. If you look at my MMA career, my biggest downfall has been my jiu-jitsu and my standout is my passion. I’m so excited to show that. ”
VanZant’s manager, Malki Kawa, explained that her free agency brought a lot of offers from promotions all over the world. But in a similar situation as VanZant, he was informed that the BKFC was putting serious pressure to bring them into their organization.
‘I represent Thiago Alves and that was actually another deal I had done through one of them [the BKFC] matchmakers in Dean Toole, who owns Island Fights in Pensacola and I know Dean Toole very, very well, ”Kawa explained. ‘He called me and said’ hey, you should probably listen to this bare knuckle boxing offer for Paige ‘and I said’ listen, this is not going to be an easy deal, it will not be that we will fight for [$100,000 and $100,000] and he was like ‘dude, just listen to the deal.’
‘Finally I came with the phone [BKFC president David Feldman] and David says it was easy to work with me. I will just say that it was easy to work with David. He’s a promoter who gets it, he understands it. I appreciated it from the get-go, because there was really no nonsense. ”
Kawa added that the financial incentives are obviously great for VanZant’s bank accounts, but the deal with the BKFC will also go beyond just fighting inside the ring.
There are plans to use VanZant in almost every aspect of BKFC’s business, including commentary and broadcast work, not to mention its exclusivity, applies only to certain sports activities, which means it would be available for other outreach activities. .
“It’s a multi-million dollar deal and we are not even talking about the sprinkles and cherries that go on top of the sundae,” Kawa pleaded. “Dave made a very strong offer. It’s a deal with four fights, so it’s not something crazy. It’s a deal with four fights and Dave and I sat down and planned these four fights out on how they should look, if they should be, over the course of the next 16 to 18 months and I think if all the going the way we expect to go between the three of us, Paige, Dave and myself, multi-million will be even bigger than that.
‘Here’s the thing, I’ll be honest with you, Dave and I have reached many agreements on this contract and one of them is that she’s going to chain, I said absolutely just like she would have signed with Bellator or ONE if the UFC, it would be an exclusive deal. The one thing Dave allowed us to do was anything but MMA or boxing, which includes pro wrestling or grappling, one of those other things. ”
With a number of high-profile free agents previously signed to his roster, Feldman saw real value in adding VanZant to the BKFC family, and although money had to be a driving factor in the deal, he preferred it as an investment instead of just throwing some extra zeros at a check to sign them.
“Paige gets paid very, very well, but she also gets more opportunities here than more opportunities to really enhance her personality,” Feldman said. ‘With Paige really helping us, she has an enormous following and she gets it. She really gets it. What needs to be done to take this to the next level.
“That’s why I think it’s a great partnership because we both do what it takes to grow together.”
In addition to fighting, VanZant is really excited that BKFC intends to promote and showcase their talents in ways that the UFC may never have done.
“I have long felt that I wanted a promotion to know yes, I am primarily a fighter and my ultimate goal is to be successful in fighting, but at the same time there are so many other things where I am talented and need to bring much more to the table, ”VanZant explained. ‘That’s what they offered me.
‘They let me out and comment. They let me become a part of the organization, more than just an athlete for them. That’s something so long that I’m complimented that I’m talented in the cage and when the cage’s door closes I’m there to fight, but I can offer so much more to the table through experiences from the past. “
With contracts signed and finalized, VanZant is currently preparing for its BKFC debut, which is likely to take place in November or December.
Together with her husband, Bellator welterweight Austin Vanderford, VanZant recently moved full-time to South Florida, where she began full-time training at the main American Top Team Academy in Coconut Creek. There, she gained valuable insight into boxing boxing from UFC veteran Thiago Alves, who will make his own BKFC debut in September.
Perhaps the biggest demand for VanZant after signing with the BKFC is their knowledge of the notorious brutality that comes along with white knuckle boxing matches. While there has never been a serious injury in a single BKFC match, the physicality of the sport is unquestionable, especially when you look at the aftermath on the faces of some of the top fighters in the promotion.
In particular, VanZant was repeatedly tagged on social media by a photo taken of fellow UFC veteran Jason Knight after he went to war with Artem Lobov in his BKFC debut.
“Honestly for me, it was never a thought,” VanZant said. “Everyone talks about one specific fight that was completely brutal and apparently looked really great, but at the same time, I’m in a position, yes, I understand people think I’m fun, but I’m first a fighter and an athlete and first.
“For me, in the UFC, I broke my arm and had to have surgery three times. That was a long-term injury that came from kneeling in the arm, from kicking the arm, from spinning backfists, those are all things I do not even have to worry about anymore. “
While not fighting, VanZant has made a lucrative career outside the box or ring with a striking appearance on ABC’s Dance with the stars as well as a recent model gig as part of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition.
She still plans to pursue these opportunities as well, but VanZant is not too worried that her face will suddenly look different, precisely because she is involved in cap-boxing matches.
“A cut on your face always hurts,” VanZant said. ‘I’ve been open before and people still think I’m beautiful, and it’s not hurted my career yet. For me, it comes down to just being an athlete and this is the promotion that sparked my passion. Of course, we have enormous players in the game. We had very great deals all over the place. But the offer that excited me and the promotion that got me excited was this. Because it’s something new, it’s exciting. I am excited to have that passion and fire back in me as an athlete.
‘My family was nervous about everywhere I went, so it’s really what I wanted to do and it was no thought for me to open up. I feel at this point, I will be well paid to be able to do plastic surgery. I have a plastic surgeon at speed dial and I can text him and say hey, you need to repair me. ”
More than anything, VanZant is ready to prove herself in the ring and that her value to the BKFC will go far beyond the number of Instagram followers who provide likes on her photos.
“There’s that stigma ‘well, she’s just a pretty face’, but I don’t see that in myself at all,” VanZant said. “I see myself as a competitor and I see myself as a really, really good striker and an athlete. I think some better way to show that. ”
