Paige VanZant’s husband Austin Vanderford suffered a brutal loss at UFC 320 on Saturday.
After signing with the promotion to take on Nikolay Veretennikov earlier this year, Austin Vanderford‘s UFC tenure couldn’t have gotten off to a much better start when he scored the second round finish.
‘The Gentleman’ was then matched up against Ramiz Brahimaj at UFC 320 and he was hoping to replicate his debut performance with another win.
And despite entering the fight as a sizable favorite, Vanderford quickly came to realize the quality in the UFC when he was submitted by Brahimaj in the second round.
Paige VanZant breaks her silence following Vanderford’s loss
In attendance for Vanderford’s fight as she always is, was his wife and former UFC star, Paige VanZant.
The former UFC fighter was in the corner of Vanderford but she couldn’t help him when he was caught in a guillotine in round two after eating a huge head kick which opened up a brutal cut above his eye.
“There’s a special kind of beauty in chasing a dream that might break your heart,” VanZant said in a post on Instagram following Vanderford’s first UFC loss.
“Tonight wasn’t his night, but it was still his story – written with courage, passion, and the kind of bravery that only comes from love and purpose. I couldn’t be prouder,” she continued her statement.
VanZant then shared a series of photos of her and the current middleweight during fight week, and finished with a picture of the gnarly cut he sustained in the fight, showing the massive damage done to his eyebrow.
What’s next for Austin Vanderford?
After sustaining such a bad injury, the 35-year-old will likely be out of action until at least next year.
And after signing for the promotion on short notice, it is likely he has at least one fight left on his current deal, and he will need to pick up a win if he is hopeful of earning a new contract.
A fight that could make sense to get Vanderford back on track, but would likely make for entertaining viewing, is a clash against the hearty Ozzy Diaz, who was also scheduled to fight at UFC 320.