Paige VanZant wants nothing more than to fight again as soon as possible.
After being out of the game for nearly 18 months due to injury, VanZant returned to action at UFC 251, but barely had a chance to sweat when he suffered a first-round arm loss to Amanda Ribas.
Later, VanZant, 26, made no excuses for his defeat and respected Ribas for a job well done. With that said, she’s eager to get the bad taste of that loss out of her mouth, so she’ll likely delay a previously planned surgery on her arm to sign a new contract and get back into action as soon as possible.
“I don’t want to have surgery again,” VanZant told MMA Fighting. “Before the fight, I said I might need one more arm surgery to feel 100 percent, but even through this, I feel 100 percent, and I hope to sign a new fight promotion with someone and fight this year”. if I can.”
VanZant has already undergone multiple surgeries on his arm, which was first broken in early 2019 during a fight against Jessica-Rose Clark. Since then, he has spent more time in doctors’ offices than in the Octagon, adding to his desire to fight again this year instead of scheduling another surgery to have the plaque removed from his arm.
“I want to fight as soon as possible,” said VanZant. “In my mind, I’m going to go ahead and eliminate that last fight and start again. I don’t know how long these negotiations last.
“I hope quickly, because I definitely don’t have any injuries. I don’t even know if they hit me, so I’m ready to fight again. “
It is well documented that VanZant’s most recent fight was the last in his current contract with the UFC. He is now allowing his management team to discuss what comes next with potential suitors, although he is not opposed to returning to the UFC if the correct offer is made.
More than anything, VanZant is only eager to prove himself again, which was not a luxury he was allowed in his last fight, thanks to Ribas who achieved quick submission.
“I am sad for how it was, but this is the first time in my entire career where, I [usually] I get excited after the losses, and most of the time I will cry for about a week, but in this fight, I only cried about an hour after the loss, ”he said. “For the first time in my life, I finally realized that losses definitely don’t define you.
“Maybe I had to hit rock bottom. This will make my comeback story that much bigger after a loss and an arm injury, and I have over 10 years to fight and show how good I am. ”
