Paige VanZant Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports

Paige VanZant says she makes more money from Instagram than UFC

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 6/24/20

Despite never winning a major championship, UFC flyweight Paige VanZant remains one of the most well-known women in the promotion due to her appearances on shows such as "Dancing with the Stars" and "Chopped" that helped her grow an Instagram audience of over 2.5 million followers.

VanZant's upcoming bout with Amanda Ribas at UFC 251, which will occur at "Fight Island" on July 11, could be her last match with the company.

VanZant told ESPN's Ariel Helwani that she isn't looking past Ribas but is ready to test free agency and earn paydays she feels she deserves after she completes the last fight on her UFC contract:

Heading into the final fight of her current contract, @paigevanzant is looking to prove her value at #UFC251

(via @arielhelwani) pic.twitter.com/t0NnW7ObRl
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 24, 2020

“Everyone knows how much I make. I make $46,000 to fight. $46k (to fight) and $46k (if she wins). I’m not going to hide that, because everybody knows. I can make way more money than that just promoting brands on Instagram. And, you know, that should say something. Why would I step away from all the amazing success that I had on 'Dancing with the Stars?' I made more money on 'Dancing with the Stars' than I have in my entire UFC career combined. Every fight, every win, every bonus. And it just shows that the money is out there.
"I love fighting. It’s what I love to do. And for this fight I dropped every single sponsor. I haven’t posted anything on Instagram. Nothing matters to me except for this fight. It’s a clean slate for me. I’m not promoting any sponsors. I have nothing. I’m just excited to go out there and prove my value to absolutely everybody, and I think fighting is how I do that."

The famous 26-year-old who holds a professional record of 8-4 lost three of her four previous encounters before she tapped Rachael Ostovich out in January 2019, but VanZant hasn't fought since.