Paige VanZant's 'bad ass' paso doble keeps her among 'Dancing with the Stars' leaders

from MMA Junkie on Apr 05, 2016
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Three weeks into Season 22 of “Dancing with the Stars,” the contenders have started to separate from the pack. One of those contenders is UFC strawweight Paige VanZant.

VanZant, back with pro partner Mark Ballas on Monday night, picked up a 23 out of a possible 30 for her paso doble – a routine the couple performed inside a makeshift octagon featuring plenty of MMA crossover dance moves.

The paso doble is a fast-paced Spanish dance modeled after a bull fight and typically closes with an imitation of the matador killing the bull. In the case of VanZant and Ballas, VanZant’s Superman punch, in lieu of a sword thrust, dropped Ballas to close the routine. The music for the dance was “300 Violin Orchestra” by Jorge Quintero, which has become a popular MMA walkout song.

The performance got mostly rave reviews from the three judges, and the in-studio crowd – including UFC Hall of Famer and “DWTS” veteran Chuck Liddell, plus VanZant’s coach and teammate at Team Alpha Male, Urijah Faber – gave it a raucous ovation. Head judge Len Goodman gave the couple a 7, saying he wanted to see more paso doble elements in the performance, and that it looked more like a contemporary routine. But judges Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba gave it 8s – with Inaba saying the dance was “bad ass.”

The 23 was down a point from the 24 VanZant got in Week 2, when she danced a salsa with Alan Bersten while Ballas was out with a back injury. After the Monday performance, VanZant and Ballas had the night’s highest score. It was equaled by actress Jodie Sweetin and Keo Motsepe one dance later, and the final two performances of the night had Week 3’s best scores. Boyz II Men singer Wanya Morris and Lindsay Arnold got a 24 for their waltz, and deaf model Nyle DiMarco and pro Peta Murgatroyd picked up a 25 – including the season’s first 9 – for their tango.

Contestants advance on the show based on their scores with the judges as well as fan votes. Each week, the dancer with the lowest combined score of the judges’ tallies and the fans’ votes is eliminated. When it came time to eliminate one more couple, VanZant and Ballas were safe. Actress Mischa Barton, ex-NFL quarterback Doug Flutie, and Sweetin were in jeopardy, and it was Barton who was sent home.

Overall, VanZant is tied with DiMarco for second place through three weeks with 68 points. Leading the pack is Morris with 71 total points. “Good Morning America” meteorologist Ginger Zee is in fourth place with 65.

Monday’s episode was themed to the stars’ “Most Memorable Year.” For VanZant, that year was 2014 – when she made her UFC debut against Kailin Curran with a $50,000 bonus-winning “Fight of the Night” TKO. In her taped pre-dance package, VanZant recalled turning to MMA as a result of being bullied in school.

“When I was in high school, I had a very, very tough year,” she said on the show. “I was very bullied. I went from being a 4.0 student to not showing up to class and missing almost a whole entire year. I couldn’t go to class without people trying to throw trash at me as I walked by. I completely lost who I was as a person. Because of all the bullying, I found fighting – and it made it all worth it.”

Going into the season, VanZant was the betting favorite to win the show at Bovada, which had the 22-year-old at 2-1 to win the long-running ABC dancing competition.

VanZant (6-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) most recently fought in December, when she suffered a submission loss to Rose Namajunas. It halted a three-fight winning streak that had moved the heavily promoted fighter up the 115-pound ranks. “Dancing with the Stars” runs through May, which means VanZant is unlikely to be booked for a fight until her time on the show is over. However, July’s big UFC 200 event would still be in the running for her next fight.

Above, check out VanZant’s third dance in full. Below, check out video clips featuring VanZant from Monday night’s “Dancing with the Stars” third Season 22 episode. And stay tuned to MMAjunkie later today for VanZant’s exclusive wrap-up Q&A with MMAjunkie from Episode No. 3.

Voting is open online at ABC.com and at the “Dancing with the Stars” Facebook page until 8 p.m. ET. Paige VanZant and Mark Ballas can be followed on Twitter (@paigevanzantufc, @MarkBallas) and Instagram (@paigevanzantufc, @markballas) and through their team hashtag #PowRightInTheKisser.

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