AEW’s newest arrival, Paige VanZant, revealed that she is not done with MMA fighting despite signing with AEW this month.
Speaking to WFAN’s Carton & Roberts, VanZant said, “I think people have this idea that you have to stick with one thing, but being a mixed martial artist, and being in this sport, you can evolve and can focus on one aspect at any given time. Definitely not retired from MMA.”
VanZant said she went through some bullying when she was a kid and her father was a big fan of MMA. One day, she asked her parents if she could give it a go and while her mother wasn’t sure, her father eventually took her to her first MMA class.
“I started fighting when I was 15. That passion got sparked in me at a young age, and just because I grew up and matured, doesn’t mean I changed who I was…I know I’ll be successful at absolutely anything,” she said. “You don’t stop your dreams in fear of your looks…I’ve been asked about professional wrestling for a really long time. I kind of always knew it would be a part of my journey and part of my life, I just didn’t know when the opportunity would take off.”
During the interview, VanZant also discussed how a mixup on her plane ticket nearly got her to miss the flight on the way to an AEW show. She said her flight was booked under her maiden name but legally she uses her husband’s last name.
“They booked it under the wrong last name, [went] up to TSA, and they were trying to get me to be able to take the flight. I Googled myself and was like, ‘This is who I am, I swear I’m the same person!’ There’s articles out there, all this crazy stuff [pops up]…I did get my mother to send me a copy of my marriage certificate!”
