DANIELLE CAMPBELL VS PAIGE VANZANT

Results: Lookout Writing: Archer

Danielle: 26 YO, 5’3 (1.60 m), 25-16-0, since 2014, Pretty Little Punchers

Paige: 26 YO, 5’4 (1.63 M), 4-0-0, since 2019, Global Boxing Syndicate

Before: Danielle Campbell eyes Paige VanZant as they meet in the pre-fight presser. Paige, a former MMA fighter coolly eyes her right back.

“I hear you are undefeated in your first four fights. That’s pretty good for a newby,” DC commented. “Of course, now the level of your opposition is stepped up: you’re fighting me.”

“I don’t consider myself all that new. I was in MMA before I ever got here. This may be a different style fighting, but I think I’m adapting to it fast. I gather you’re considered pretty hot stuff. I’m looking forward to walking you.”

“Really? You are right about one thing: I AM ‘pretty hot’—actually that should be ‘very hot’--but you don’t have to take my word for it. I’ll show it to you in the ring.” Danielle said sounding a trifle irked.

“And I’ll show you why I am 4-0,” Paige retorts.

“See you then,” DC snaps, clearly not too pleased with Paige’s comments.

“Looking forward to it,” Paige assures her.

The two do, indeed, meet again in the ring as Fight Night rolls around. Danielle is in a yellow one piece with black gloves and boots, yellow laces. Paige wears a black one piece with white gloves and boots, black laces. DC wears were hair in a perky ponytail. Paige has her blonde hair in a top knot on her head, Both fighters looking calm and ready for business. Ring ibstructions go smoothly. Gloves are tapped. DC and Paige adjourn to their corners. DING! DING! The bell rings.

R1: Danielle ad Paige both out quickly to mid ring, but DC striking first with hooks into Paige’s abs and then a solid swatting right to the jaw. Paige circling, trying to strike at Dani to the head, but DC shows good evasive action, getting Paige to miss and then countering with more shots to the blonde’s jaw. Paige then moves forward, trying to get at Danielle’s chin and goes land a good uppercut that momentarily stuns the brunette. However DC strikes back with a flurry of hooks to the midsection and then a flurry of shots to the jaw and chin. Paige gets smacked hard and drops back to clear her head. DC stays with her, working those abs with more strong hooks. Paige jabbing, but it is not really slowing the brunette’s attack. They duel to the bell, but DC comes away with a comfortable win.

R2: PVZ showing much more offense this round. She advances quickly and now goes after DC to the body. Dani’s ribs and stomach getting pounded by Paige’s hooks and she’s got Dani falling back. However Dani then comes back in and she is responding with a body attack of her own. Paige increases the punch rate of her body shots and the two are soon toe to toe going at hard and sweaty. Paige seems to be gaining ground as the round ends, she forcing DC back and has Dani breathing hard after the bell. Still, it was a close round, but Paige VanZant has pulled it out.

R3: Paige looking eager on her stool during the break. She is clearly in a hurry to get her gloves into Danielle and comes bounding out at the bell. DC out promptly too, but as Paige comes lunging forward to bring her hooks into DC’s belly she gets NAILED by a Campbell right uppercut. Paige staggered by the blow and Dani pours in the follow-up with rights and lefts to the chin and jaw. Paige’s head getting knocked around left-right-left and up-down, DOWN GOES PAIGE! The blonde just crashes into the floor at Danielle’s boot tops. Dani looks down, smiles and trots to the neutral corner. The referee starts counting as Paige tries to push herself up off the canvas. She reaches her knees. Then starts to rise, but shudders and falls back onto her butt. She is still struggling to rise, but it’s not fast enough…

“EIGHT!...NINE!....TEN!.,,OUT!” proclaims the referee.

THE WINNER: DANIELLE CAMPBELL DEFEARS PAIGE VANZANT KO3!

After: Danielle in high spirits. Being hugged by teammates Lucy Hale, Shay Mitchell and Brec Bassinger as they join in DC’s celebration. Soon Dani's gloves are removed and she back acros the ring to stand before a crestfallen Paige.

“Come on, Paige, you know what’s next: I get to walk you.”

“I know,” Paige says glumly getting to her feet, “I liked these a lot better when I was leading the Walk,”

“Now let this be a lesson to you: when it comes to Walks of Shame, it is always better to give than receive.”

“Words of wisdom,” Paige says sarcastically and then has to let DC lead her around the ring.

Later Dani tells Skip Tracey of Archer News, “She’s got a decent punch, but she was in too much of a rush in the 3rd. I could see she was leaving her chin open and took advantage. I hope she’s too discouraged by this loss. It’s got to hurt after 4 straight wins to have your lights out in 3.”

Paige tells Skip: “I appreciate her concern for me. OK, I made a mistake and paid for it. I will know better next time. I just hope I get the chance to show Campbell that in a future fight.”

Paige VanZant was 4-0 coming into this fight so Dani Campbell had a point that this KO3 loss has to hurt. But bad things can happen to young fighters and she did learn the hard way that carelessness in a fight can be a disaster. Hopefully, she will take this lesson into future fights and be a better boxer for the setback. Needed win for Campbell, she was on a 4 fight losing streak and a loss to a relative rookie would not have been good. So now DC is off to a winning start in 2021 and we’ll see if she can build on this initial victory in the new year.