Paige VanZant

Paige Michelle VanZant (née Sletten; married name Vanderford) is an American mixed martial artist, bare knuckle boxer, professional wrestler, professional boxer, slap fighter, author, model, and OnlyFans content creator. Born on March 26, 1994, she gained widespread recognition competing in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) within both the strawweight and flyweight divisions. Beyond mixed martial arts, she has competed in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC), All Elite Wrestling (AEW), Misfits Boxing, and Power Slap, alongside television appearances on Dancing with the Stars and Chopped.

VanZant was born in Dundee, Oregon, and raised in Sherwood, Oregon. Raised by parents who owned a dance studio, she trained in ballet, jazz, and hip hop for over thirteen years, and appeared in a Bissell mop commercial as a teenager. Growing up, she enjoyed outdoor activities such as fishing and riding dirt bikes. During high school, she experienced sexual assault and severe bullying, including taunts based on her surname Sletten. This led her to legally change her surname to VanZant, selecting it from one of her mother's dance students. Following a family move to Sparks, Nevada, she discovered martial arts at UFC veteran Ken Shamrock's gym while seeking a dance studio.

After winning an amateur bout at age 18, VanZant made her professional MMA debut on June 30, 2012, defeating Jordan Nicole Gaza by split decision. Following a decision victory over Amber Stautzenberger and a loss to Tecia Torres at Invicta FC 4, she was signed to the UFC's newly formed strawweight division in December 2013. In late 2014, she made her UFC debut, defeating Kailin Curran via third-round TKO, which earned her a Fight of the Night bonus. Shortly after, she signed a sponsorship deal with Reebok. In the UFC strawweight division, she secured victories against Felice Herrig, Alex Chambers, and Bec Rawlings—the latter via a jumping switch kick KO that earned Performance of the Night honors—while suffering losses to Rose Namajunas and Michelle Waterson. She finished her strawweight tenure ranked twelfth.

Moving to the flyweight division in 2017, VanZant faced setbacks, including breaking her arm during a 2018 loss to Jessica Rose-Clark. After undergoing arm surgery and enduring repeated fractures, she earned a submission victory over Rachael Ostovich in 2019 before concluding her UFC career with a loss to Amanda Ribas in July 2020. In August 2020, VanZant signed a multi-fight deal with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, where she debuted against Britain Hart and later fought Rachael Ostovich, earning a Fight of the Night award in her bout with Ostovich.

VanZant expanded into professional wrestling by making appearances for All Elite Wrestling beginning in September 2021. She officially signed with AEW in March 2022 and won her in-ring debut at the Double or Nothing event in May 2022, before her profile was removed from the roster page in June 2024. In May 2024, she made her professional boxing debut with Misfits Boxing, fighting to a split draw against Elle Brooke. She also joined Power Slap in 2024, securing unanimous decision wins over Christine Volmarans and Mikael-Michelle Brown, as well as a draw against Chelsea Dodson.

Outside of combat sports, VanZant appeared on television and published written work. In 2016, she finished as the runner-up on season 22 of Dancing with the Stars alongside dance partner Mark Ballas. In 2017, she won the Star Power: Culinary Muscle episode of the Food Network series Chopped. On April 10, 2018, she released her autobiography, Rise: Surviving the Fight of My Life, detailing her personal life and athletic career.