Paige VanZant: UFC Should Build 145-Pound Division Around Cyborg

UFC on FOX 22 headliner Paige VanZant is pro-Cyborg…

Heading in to this weekend’s festivities in Sacramento, California, main event star Paige VanZant has gotten a lot of air time. Recently stating she’d fight anyone, including Ronda Rousey, ‘PVZ’ has once again been making headline news on a regular basis. Since joining the UFC in 2014, VanZant’s larger than life persona has scored her a large following, and UFC on FOX 22 will be the second event she’s headlined in two years.

’12 Gauge’ takes on Michelle Waterson in California tonight (Saturday Dec. 17, 2016), but even with such a task at hand, ‘PVZ’ is still up to her old antics. During the official weigh-ins show last night, VanZant and ‘Karate Hottie’ had an impromptu dance-off for the fans. Women’s MMA is growing steadily in the UFC, and with stars like VanZant constantly rising, the future is very bright indeed. That said, there are still some very big bumps in the road, something the 22-year old starlet is also aware of.

VanZant on Cyborg/125

Speaking with MMAJunkie.com after the UFC on FOX 22 open workouts, Paige VanZant delved in to the subject of Cris Cyborg. After reportedly turning down two title fights at 145 pounds because she only had eight weeks notice, Cyborg has been left out of the inaugural championship bout for the women’s featherweight strap. Obviously this led to more friction between Cyborg and UFC president Dana White, and ‘PVZ’ gives her take on the saga:

“I feel like if they were making a (145-pound women’s division), they should build it around Cris ‘Cyborg’ – she really deserves it. If they’re not going to build it around Cris, then I think they should open up the 125 division, because there’s a lot of us that really should go up.”

“We see a lot of girls that are missing weight at 115 because they can’t make that cut; it’s a huge cut for a lot of us,” she said. “I feel like I would go up to 125 if the division opened up. I don’t walk at 135 pounds, so I’d be way too small for 135. There’s a lot of us that would meet in that weight class; there’s a lot of very successful 125-ers that should come to the UFC. So, it seems like the UFC’s very strategic with their plans, and they probably know what they’re doing.”

More Women’s Divisions

Since the trouble between Cyborg and the UFC has started brewing again, interesting questions have resurfaced. It seems like just yesterday Dana White was saying there were no women for the featherweight category, forcing Cyborg to make an extremely dangerous weight cut twice in the space of five months. Now they are in such a rush they couldn’t give the Brazilian star 12 weeks notice to make the cut to 145 safely.

Could this have something to do with setting up a rematch between Holly Holm and Ronda Rousey? Perhaps the new owners are so keen on making more belts and more money, they are overlooking legitimacy, but that’s purely speculation, of course. Either way you look at it, Cyborg is getting snubbed once again, whether the promotion has intended to do so, or not.