Urijah Faber Believes We'll See Best Paige VanZant At Flyweight
Urijah Faber Believes We'll See Best Paige VanZant At Flyweight
UFC Hall of Fame fighter Urijah Faber believes the best is yet to come for Paige VanZant.
Urijah Faber may have retired from mixed martial arts, but the former WEC king is still very much in the game on the management side of things.
In addition to continuing his duties as the leader of Team Alpha Male, Faber also represents several fighters who are aiming at much bigger things in the fight game. Of this roster, former strawweight turned flyweight Paige VanZant is at the front of the pack.
Although VanZant has received a huge promotional push from the UFC, her performances inside the Octagon have lacked consistency. Granted, VanZant has notched a few key victories during her time inside the Octagon, but a pair of losses in her past three fights have served to stunt her run toward a shot at the women's 115-pound title.
Therefore, the 23-year-old has decided to make a move up a weight class and face veteran Jessica Eye in the newly minted flyweight division at UFC 216 on Oct. 7.
As VanZant's former trainer and current manager, Faber believes the "Dancing With the Stars" alum has what it takes to make a successful jump and thinks fans will finally get to see the best of what VanZant has to offer competing at 125 pounds.
The former featherweight and bantamweight title challenger Faber recently spoke to Submission Radio, where he discussed VanZant's potential fighting at a higher weight class.
"It's going to be very interesting because you give up different things when you go up a weight," Faber said. "I've been at 135 and 145 (pounds), and my weight cuts were big weight cuts. I've done it for years -- as far as being a wrestler goes -- but it got to the point where I'd put on 18 to 23 pounds after a weight cut.
"I don't have my finger on the pulse of her training right now because she's out in Oregon, but I still manage her and may actually go out there for a couple of days to check up on her. She seems really happy with what she has going out there. She's back in her hometown where she's originally from and back in a great place. I'm expecting to see a great performance from her. She has a very tough opponent and someone who is sort of understated because of her win-loss record as of late, but Jessica Eye is a very tough challenge.
"She's coming down a weight while Paige is coming up a weight, and I'm curious to see, but we are thinking Paige is going to get her."
In addition to continuing his duties as the leader of Team Alpha Male, Faber also represents several fighters who are aiming at much bigger things in the fight game. Of this roster, former strawweight turned flyweight Paige VanZant is at the front of the pack.
Although VanZant has received a huge promotional push from the UFC, her performances inside the Octagon have lacked consistency. Granted, VanZant has notched a few key victories during her time inside the Octagon, but a pair of losses in her past three fights have served to stunt her run toward a shot at the women's 115-pound title.
Therefore, the 23-year-old has decided to make a move up a weight class and face veteran Jessica Eye in the newly minted flyweight division at UFC 216 on Oct. 7.
As VanZant's former trainer and current manager, Faber believes the "Dancing With the Stars" alum has what it takes to make a successful jump and thinks fans will finally get to see the best of what VanZant has to offer competing at 125 pounds.
The former featherweight and bantamweight title challenger Faber recently spoke to Submission Radio, where he discussed VanZant's potential fighting at a higher weight class.
"It's going to be very interesting because you give up different things when you go up a weight," Faber said. "I've been at 135 and 145 (pounds), and my weight cuts were big weight cuts. I've done it for years -- as far as being a wrestler goes -- but it got to the point where I'd put on 18 to 23 pounds after a weight cut.
"I don't have my finger on the pulse of her training right now because she's out in Oregon, but I still manage her and may actually go out there for a couple of days to check up on her. She seems really happy with what she has going out there. She's back in her hometown where she's originally from and back in a great place. I'm expecting to see a great performance from her. She has a very tough opponent and someone who is sort of understated because of her win-loss record as of late, but Jessica Eye is a very tough challenge.
"She's coming down a weight while Paige is coming up a weight, and I'm curious to see, but we are thinking Paige is going to get her."