Photo by Phil Lambert / BKFC
- Paige Van Zant lost her Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut but will compete again in June.
- That's according to promoter David Feldman, who sees a big future for the former UFC star.
- Britain Hart, who beat Van Zant, could also fight in June and they might rematch later in the year.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Paige Van Zant has a great future in bare knuckle boxing and will return to the ring in June, her fight promoter David Feldman told Insider.
After six years with the UFC, Paige Van Zant stunned the combat sports industry when she left the leading mixed martial arts firm to join Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship – dubbed the bloodiest show in town.
The American fighter made her BKFC debut in February, losing to the experienced slugger Britain Hart in a gripping bout at the KnuckleMania event in Miami.
Despite the defeat, Feldman told us Van Zant has a bright future in his promotion because of her commercial appeal and the adaptability she showed in the later rounds.
"From a business standpoint she delivered on every aspect we hoped she would deliver on," beamed Feldman during a Zoom call with Insider.
"The theory behind signing Paige wasn't because she's the best fighter ever, and not because she's good-looking, but because of the fan-base she can deliver outside of the combat sports community.
"Many of her fans are not fight fans, and now they see she's fighting bare knuckle, that brings in people who never would have come in before."
Van Zant will keep improving in bare knuckle fighting, Feldman said, because it is such a different style to being hit with gloves on.
"Now, let's talk about her fighting. She started out slow, and likely a bit leery. It's different [in BKFC than it is in UFC]. I don't care who you are … it's a different animal when you get hit with a bare knuckle.
"It's not like you're just getting dazed, stunned, and wobbled. It actually hurts. When you get hit on the cheekbone with a knuckle, it's a completely different type of pain [than if you were hit with a glove].
"So this is something you have to adapt to more, especially when you can grab the back of the head, throw punches, clinch, and throw punches.
Van Zant improved through the fight, Feldman said, noting that she started to look "comfortable" towards the end.
"But the thing that impressed me about Paige was in the fourth and fifth round when she started to feel comfortable.
"She found her home, and picked up the pace. It's not like she started fast, got hit hard, and then disappeared inside her shell. She got hit with punches and then came out of her shell.
"We're very happy with her performance, I think she has a future in the sport, and I look forward to having her back at Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship in June or July."
On who the opponent might be, Feldman told us that the company has somebody in mind for Van Zant but, at the time of the interview, the bout agreement had not yet been signed.
"Hopefully that's going to happen and we can announce that soon because she's a good name and it's an ideal match-up for both of the girls."
Van Zant's rival Hart could fight a separate match on the same summer show
Photo by Phil Lambert / BKFC
After suffering a loss by doctor's stoppage in her bare knuckle debut in 2019, Hart rebounded with a knockout win in 2020, before out-pointing Van Zant earlier this year.
Hart has long been highly-regarded by the BKFC, but it was the victory over Van Zant that saw the boxer achieve a new level of fame.
Immediately after the win, Hart cut an immortal promo in which she said she's not a person, and claimed to instead be a feeling.
"And all of you guys are going to feel it," she said.
Feldman said a new BKFC star was born that night as a result. "Not a lot of people knew about her, but now her Instagram is blowing up, and her popularity is blowing up."
Hart could compete during the same June or July show that Van Zant will feature on and, should they both win those separate bouts, it could set-up a rematch in the future, Feldman said.
"The first one was a close fight."
As Feldman knows Hart better than most, Insider had to ask: Is she a person or a feeling?
Laughing, he replied: "I think she's a feeling but I don't know, man. She took advantage of that moment. The post-fight was hilarious. She did her thing.
"She did what she said she was going to do, got the victory, and we can build on that for her when she returns in June or July."
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship's next event, BKFC 16, takes place Friday in Biloxi, Mississippi. It is broadcast on the BKFC app in the US, and on Fite TV internationally.