Paige VanZant’s impressive recent form continued at UFC 191 with a sparkling display against Alex Chambers and she’s earned comparisons from organisation boss Dana White to the man who topped the bill, Demetrious Johnson.
Johnson turned in an immaculate performance to defend his UFC flyweight title against John Dodson at the event, winning via a unanimous decision. According to White, there are shades of Johnson’s all-action style in some of VanZant’s early performances, per Steven Marrocco and John Morgan of MMAJunkie.com:
She has all the attributes of a little rock star. She’s got a great personality, she’s absolutely relentless when she fights; she puts (Demetrious) ‘Mighty Mouse’ (Johnson) type pressure on fighters, and yesterday, she was the most searched fighter on UFC.com. People love her.
All of her sponsors were all sitting cageside with their phones out filming her when she walked out. She’s got it. She’s got to put in the hard work and keep her head together.
There was definitely a relentlessness about VanZant as she ground down Chambers. The 21-year-old was not content to sit back and soak up pressure on the night, using subtle darts to get past her opponent’s defensive shape before eventually locking in an armbar in the third round. Here’s a look at the thrilling finish:
It wasn’t too dissimilar a showing to Johnson’s later on in the evening. He was far too good for Dodson over the course of five rounds, with sharp footwork and unrelenting industry preventing the challenger from ever getting a foothold in the bout.
As noted by Chamatkar Sandhu of MMA Junkie, at the moment there is no other fighter in the division who would get close to Johnson:
Johnson has almost patented this aggressive style and it’d be no surprise if VanZant had watched on from afar and tried to apply some of these attributes to her own skill set. But at the moment, while she’s promising, there is a long way to go before the youngster makes it to the very top of the tree.
There will certainly be a temptation to fast-track her there. After all, as White noted, VanZant’s friendly character and aesthetic fighting style have made her an instant hit with UFC fans and as the piece from Marrocco and Morgan mentioned, there has been some talk of Paige taking on Joanna Jedrzejczyk for the strawweight title.
But as MMA expert Robert Sargent touched upon here, the dominant Pole is currently in a class of her own:
VanZant needs to continue doing exactly what she’s been doing. Her popularity will ensure that big opportunities will eventually come her way, but for now, she’s still a UFC novice. Despite White’s effusive praise, there are areas in which she still has plenty to learn and with appropriate opposition those refinements will be made.
A bout against Jedrzejczyk would be intriguing, lucrative and it’d certainly put the aggressive tactics deployed by VanZant to the test. But it’s important to keep things grounded when plotting her inevitable ascension to the sport’s summit.
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