I don't go into a fight mad. I go into a fight like it's my birthday. I love what I'm doing.
— Paige VanZant
In fighting, you're not going 200 mph, but there's obviously danger in the sport. If you're a fighter or a NASCAR driver, you're obviously an adrenaline junkie. Both also take a lot of skill.
I like ground and pound; I don't know if it is like a technique or discipline. I like to be on the ground, but I don't necessarily go for submissions or anything.
I'm just going to be myself; there's no reason for me to try and go out there and put a certain facade on or emphasize, 'Hey, I'm this. You need to believe it.' I just want to be the best that I can be, and if people like me, that's great, and if they don't, they don't.
If I wasn't a fighter, I wouldn't be unique.
I would love to go do movies; I would love to kind of delve into other things. I did do acting and modeling before, when I was a kid, so it would be nice to use those things.
I think the hardest thing I went through in the UFC was my first loss. It was terrible. It was traumatizing. But it's just going back and rebuilding and getting better.
I am very much a girly girl as well as being this tough, athletic fighter. I grew up a tomboy. I got my first four wheeler when I was eight. I got my first dirt bike shortly after. So, I have a lot of these manly qualities, I guess you would say. But, I also like to go get dressed up every weekend.
I do Athlete Devotion throughout all my fight camps. I am a Christian, so I fight with God first, and I have my devotions with me everywhere I go.
There is a lot more to me than just being a crazy fighter.
I definitely want to be an inspiration or a role model for all the little girls out there or anyone out there that wants to break stereotypes. I feel like I'm breaking stereotypes with what I'm doing. I'm not the typical fighter, and there's a lot of people out there that won't do something just because they don't fit the stereotype.
I try to eat healthy for the most part. When I cut weight, I cut pretty much everything out. I don't have protein when I cut weight other than what I might get from something like chicken breast. So I don't eat any extra protein, just because I'm trying to get the weight off. That's the only real diet I have.
When I'm training, I cater a little bit to my opponents.
When I started training to fight, it was more out of boredom than anything. I was looking for more things to do. I started with boxing, and my coaches told me I had a lot of potential and that I should consider making it a career. I was like, 'Whatever.' I was just 15 at the time, and I never imagined something like that.
I think the reason why people have trouble fighting me is because I don't come from a specific background, and they can't prepare to fight me. I come in, and I push the pace, and I think that pushes a lot of people off their game, as much as I push the pace through the whole fight.
For me, I've been known as a very well-rounded fighter, and I think that's really important, that you're well rounded and comfortable in every situation that a fight can go. A lot of people focus on just one discipline, and when they get out of that, they're in a difficult position.
Honestly, at times, I still get bored. 'Dancing with the Stars' kept me busy, and that's what I like. When I first started fighting, I was working two jobs, and I was still going to school at the same time while training. I'm meant to be a busy person.
I strictly want to beat every opponent I face, whether it's for a title or for a small show. The only thing for me is winning my fights and being the best athlete I can be.
Winning my first UFC fight by a finish, I've never felt so accomplished in my life.
Sunday, I go to church; I take the day off. I rest.
My dad grew up wrestling. He knew Ken Shamrock, and I didn't know who he was at the time. So, he found out that Shamrock was in a gym in Reno, and he wanted me to go try a class with him. I tried it and fell in love the first day. Ken told me that I had potential in this sport, and he's the reason I kept at it.
You can't go into the cage and not love it, and you can't go in there unprepared. You have to prepare.
I am a huge wrestling fan. I would say The Rock is my favorite person to watch for obvious reasons.
There's a lot of girls out there that can relate to me. They can look at me and see themselves a little bit. There's a lot of girls out there that have a tougher side to them. I just think that people are really grown and attracted to that, and that's why people like to see me fight.
CrossFit is just another thing I've become passionate about. I like to continue to make gains and compete with myself. There's many ways to do that either with adding weight or competing with my own times or my previous records. It's been nothing but a benefit to me, and I love lifting weights.
After I won my first amateur fight, I figured I would do fighting on the side while I was going to school. I got an offer after that amateur fight to take a professional fight. The opponent kind of wanted to have an easy win for her pro debt, and they said they'd pay me $1,500. I was like, 'Yeah, might as well get paid for what I was doing.'
I've been blessed; I've been getting so many amazing opportunities because of the UFC. I know there are going to be haters no matter how successful I am, and I just have to be thankful for all the blessings that I have because all of it can be over before you know it.
Sometimes the media twists your words, and they say things to get a headline, and it's not necessarily what came out of your mouth, and they take things out of context 90 percent of the time. But I guess - any publicity is good publicity, I guess.
You have to try to grow between every fight: get back in the gym and keep working hard and find the areas that you need to work on. See what you did wrong and work on it.
I have so many other talents other than fighting, and I would love to be able to show those off. I would like to say, 'Yes, I'm a fighter, and I'm this,' or, 'Yes I'm a fighter, but I'm also this.'
I gave up school. I gave up a really, really good job. I gave up a lot of stuff. I cut a lot of people out of my life so I could just focus on my fighting dreams.
I was in culinary school for a little while, but it was just too hard to cut weight and cook at the same time.
I needed something to challenge myself a little more. I found fighting, and it completely fit my personality.
'Dancing with the Stars' was a really great experience. People were definitely surprised that I'm a fighter, or they couldn't believe I'm a professional fighter, but I feel like I'm going to get that for a while. I'm excited to bring a new demographic over to MMA and the UFC.
I've always been very competitive, and I've always had this desire to win my entire life. I guess when it comes to being in the cage, especially, I just hate losing more than I like to win. The idea of someone beating me just doesn't sit well.
I've always been a bubbly and energetic and happy person, but when I get upset, I get frustrated; when someone makes me mad, I definitely have a temper, and I've had to deal with having a temper my whole life.
I train for whatever happens. I'm prepared for wherever the fight goes.
