Paige VanZant turns down Bellator, signs with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship

Paige VanZant made it abundantly clear that she was looking for other potential opportunities outside the UFC when she hit free agency. And when…

By: Tim Burke | 3 years ago
Paige VanZant turns down Bellator, signs with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship
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Paige VanZant made it abundantly clear that she was looking for other potential opportunities outside the UFC when she hit free agency. And when Dana White basically showed her the door, her decision was probably made that much easier. But where she actually ended up is a bit of a surprise.

According to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, PVZ turned down an offer from Bellator to sign with BKFC instead. Yes, Paige VanZant is now the property of Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship.

VanZant then took to social media herself to announce her signing:

The above video is a stream of her and David Feldman, president of BKFC, making the official announcement of her signing. She does not have an opponent as of yet, but Feldman stated that she would be making her debut in early November.

According to MMA Fighting, Bellator FC CEO Scott Coker stated that he did offer a contract to VanZant so she could join her husband Austin Vanderford in the promotion. Ultimately, she passed on that to sign the “multi-million dollar deal” with BKFC instead.

VanZant (8-5 MMA, 5-4 UFC) is coming off a quick submission loss to Amanda Ribas in the last fight of her UFC contract. BKFC does promote a women’s division right now and their current champ, Bec Rawlings, is someone who PVZ has defeated in MMA in the past. So it will be interesting to see if they push her into a title shot right away.

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