Paige VanZant will make her long-awaited return to the Octagon next weekend when shes takes on aspiring women’s flyweight contender Rachael Ostovich at UFC on ESPN+ 1 in Brooklyn, New York.
It will mark the first time the 24-year-old star has competed since a decision loss to Jessica-Rose Clark back at UFC Fight Night 124 over one year ago. Before that, “12 Gauge” dropped a disappointing submission loss to Michelle Waterson in a main event spot at UFC on FOX 22.
In preparation for her return to the cage and main card scrap against Ostovich at UFC’s debut on ESPN, the promotion has released VanZant’s memorable bout with veteran Bec Rawlings from 2016 (shown above in its entirety).
After a back-and-forth first round, PVZ was able to land a beautiful switch kick just moments into the second that put Rawlings on her back. VanZant followed her efforts up with a few punches before the referee stepped in and called the action, landing “12 Gauge” her second knockout finish in UFC competition.
We’ll have to wait and see if VanZant took her time away from the cage to fix the holes in her game and give herself the best chance to defeat Ostovich in dramatic fashion and end the first two-fight losing streak of her young career.
UFC on ESPN+ 1, which takes place on Jan. 19 from inside Barclays Center, will be headlined by a flyweight superfight pitting current titleholder Henry Cejudo against UFC bantamweight champion T.J. Dillashaw. The main card will also feature the Octagon debut of former NFL star Greg Hardy.
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