Paige VanZant names 18 rivals who are willing to fight her, demands fight from UFC

Paige VanZant wants a fight.

Over the last few days, the fan favorite flyweight has made it clear that she’s willing to compete against pretty much anyone, be it in the flyweight division or at strawweight.

In a multi-part post to her Instagram story, Paige VanZant sent a message to the UFC, claiming that 18 fighters have accepted her recent callouts, and imploring the promotion to match her up with one of them.

“Hey UFC, all of these fighters agreed to fight me, I accept all of them,” VanZant wrote. “I am healthy and ready to fight!”

VanZant then shared screenshots of the following fighters’ Instagram profiles, all of whom she says have expressed a willingness to fight her: Miranda Granger, Antonina Shevchenko, Emily Whitmire, Andrea Lee, Montana De La Rosa, Lauren Mueller, Shana Dobson, Veronica Macedo, Alexa Grasso, Diana Belbiţă, Karolina Kowalkiewicz, Wu Yanan, Angela Hill, Poliana Botelho, Molly McCann, Jodie Esquibel, and Nadia Kassem.

VanZant has not fought since January, when she defeated Rachael Ostovich with a second-round armbar. Her next most recent fights occurred all the way back in January, 2018, and December, 2016.

While some of her absences have been due to obligations outside the cage, such as a stint on Dancing with the Stars, she’s also been sidelined by an unfortunate string of injuries, particularly to her arm. That said, VanZant is now healthy and ready to fight, and would seem to have a long list of viable opponents available across two weight classes.

It’s worth noting, of course, that her next fight will be the final fight on her current UFC contract, and that she plans to test free agency thereafter.

Here’s hoping the UFC heeds this call and gives Paige VanZant a fight soon.

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 10/30/2019.