I just opened up ESPN, Fox Sports, etc this morning and there are articles still saying that Paige is a star even after last night's fight. It seems like people will have her back no matter how she performs (which is a great thing) but in terms of her MMA career, that must strip away some of the extra fire and motivation as well. There are female fighters like Holly Holm that had to fight for like 15 years to get the same level of promotion and popularity that Paige has now at 22 LOL. It seems hard to have that extra competitive edge when you already have fame, money and popularity- especially in a sport like MMA. If you compare fighters like her and Sage to fighters like Anderson Silva, Floyd Mayweather, Cain Velasquez, etc who grew up in poor/working class families and had to fight their way to a good life, then it's not hard to see why they had that extra motivation to succeed. Not saying you have to be poor to be a great fighter, McGregor still finds ways to get motivated even though he is filthy rich now. It seems like Paige is too cute, nice and loved (atm) to have that extra chip on her shoulder though. I feel like she will continue to be stuck in this zone if she keeps training at Alpha Male, she should probably spend some time elsewhere for her next camp.
She has a lot of heart, but I don't consider her a fighter. At least not yet. She has a long way to go. But that's just my opinion so...
I love Paige. She is 22 like you said...The sky is the limit for her but she has to stay at least winning. Seems like she cant compete with the experienced fighters. I DO think Michelle Waterson is a sleeping top 5 fighter. I think the girl is bound for a championship eventually. Shes just small for the weight class but is super good at everything. She will be rag dolled by the likes of Claudia and out struck by a Namajunas. Paige just doesnt have the skill to compete above top 5 yet. She has to keep fighting the TUF fighters that didn't win on the show. Shes the type of fighter that needs to approach the sport like the video game. Keep fighting the people you know you can beat
She should have to go to Invicta, and fight some lesser opposition, so she can grow for a couple years. But she's too marketable to simply drop, so they'll keep having her beat weak comp in the UFC, whilst promoting her as some world-beater.
