Paige VanZant has agreed to end her 30-month spell on the sidelines.
The former UFC star hasn’t fought since being outpointed by Rachael Ostovich – a fighter she previously beat in MMA’s premier promotion – at BKFC 19 in July 2021.
Some fans had assumed 'PVZ' was done with fighting after she found success away from combat sports by creating an OnlyFans page.
However, the 29-year-old has now announced she has accepted a fight in a new sport after previously finding fame in MMA before transitioning to bare-knuckle boxing.
“I got called by my manager the day before yesterday, and I got offered a fight,” VanZant revealed on the podcast she shares with her MMA fighter husband Austin Vanderford.
“A boxing match, and I took it. I don’t know if I can give all the details, I haven’t signed a contract yet. I accepted the fight.”
VanZant, who was recently called out by influencer boxer Elle Brooke during an interview with talkSPORT, stopped short of revealing her comeback opponent.
’12 Gauge’ agreed to fight next month, but the date was pushed back.
VanZant said: "The date they offered me was March 23, which was perfect. Hell yeah, I’ll get one more fight in before I turn 30 because I turn 30 [on] March 26.
“So, I told my manager f***, yeah, I’ll take it. I’ll get back into boxing.
"I was just really excited. The opportunity was really cool. So it was perfect, eight-week camp, I don’t have that long to stress or overthink, or anything like that, so that’s perfect. It turns out it’s not going to be March 23.
“After I accepted it, they’re like, 'You know what, we’re going to move it to [May or June]'. I heard both dates, so once I have the full information, we’ll be able to release it on the podcast."
VanZant previously claimed her return bout would be in BKFC, where she signed a lucrative $400,000 per-fight deal after leaving the UFC in 2020 – but the opportunity to compete in boxing was simply too good to pass up.
She added: "Accepted a boxing match, that will be my next fight.
"It’s really, really exciting. Gloves on, it’s just straight boxing.
“I did think my next fight would be a bare-knuckle boxing match, but this opportunity came forward, and I was just like f*** it, let’s go. So took a fight.”
