Paige VanZant, Britain Hart issue statements following main event fight at BKFC: KnuckleMania

Women’s fighters Paige VanZant and Britain Hart have both issued statements following their bare-knuckle main event matchup at BKFC: KnuckleMania.

VanZant left the UFC last year to sign a big-money free-agent deal with BKFC. On Friday night at the promotion’s ‘KnuckleMania’ event, VanZant entered the ring against Hart as the betting favorite. Though VanZant showed her patented toughness and durability by going the full five rounds, once the final bell rang it was Hart who was awarded the winner via unanimous decision, winning 49-46 on all three judges’ scorecards. Following the fight, both women took to their social media to shared post-fight statements. Check out what both women posted below.

Paige VanZant: Humble in victory. Humble in defeat.

Britain Hart: WE DID IT. Digging deep to pull off a massive upset in the main event of the biggest card in @bareknucklefc history against a superstar like Paige VanZant was a dream come true. There are so many people to thank from my kids to my team to my family to my friends to my fans to my sponsors. I want you to all know that I love you and thank you for believing in me and inspiring me. I am overwhelmed with messages and new followers but I promise I will be in touch with all of you. I am filled with so much joy and thanks right now. This is just the beginning of new chapter in my career and life. As soon as I heal up… I’m coming for the BKFC title.

It remains to be seen what is next for both VanZant and Hart following their brawl at BKFC: KnuckleMania. For VanZant, it seems likely that the matchmakers will try and match her up with an inexperienced bare-knuckle opponent for her next fight in order to rebuild her confidence following the loss. As for Hart, she has a lot more leverage now in negotiations for her next fight with BKFC after picking up the upset over VanZant.

What do you think is next for Paige VanZant after losing to Britain Hart at BKFC: KnuckleMania?

Adam Martin

MMA journalist, podcast host, and handicapper for MyMMANews.com, MMAoddsbreaker.com, and Bookies.com. MMAOB Daily Podcast host. Join me LIVE @ 5 pm EST every Monday for my live free podcast. Over 10 years of experience writing about MMA. I love this sport.

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