Elle Brooke shares at least one thing in common with Paige VanZant when it comes to their Misfits boxing match on Saturday.
Thanks to endeavors outside the ring, neither of them actually need to fight — at least from a financial perspective — but both choose to compete. For Brooke, she came to fame as a social influencer and adult entertainer, while VanZant earned a household name after competing in the UFC and then eventually BKFC before launching her own modeling site that has reaped huge benefits for her.
But as much as it might seem like money isn’t the driving factor behind their fight, Brooke argues that VanZant returned from a nearly three-year old hiatus to ensure the combat sports world didn’t forget about her.
“I think she fights to keep relevant, whereas that’s not the reason why I fight,” Brooke told MMA Fighting. “My bread and butter is entertainment and entertaining people, but that’s not what she does. Yeah, she probably does love it, but it’s probably for the bag as well.”
Brooke felt like she learned a lot about VanZant and her intentions during their first encounter to begin promoting the upcoming fight. With her focus only on the fight, Brooke says VanZant was still cordial and playing nice, and she just didn’t understand that.
“I think we’re different in that aspect,” Brooke explained. “People are invested in me like I do crazy shit. Now I’m known as a boxer, but I’m known for doing things for views, where she’s known for being a fighter, especially like you can tell in our faceoff, she’s being nice. I’m there for the game.
“We’re having a fight. Why are you being nice to me? I think perhaps we share some similarities but we’re different at the same time.”
No matter why VanZant is fighting or her intentions to cross over into boxing, Brooke knows she’s the underdog heading into Saturday night.
She may have beaten some social influencers and reality show stars, but VanZant is a legitimate professional fighter with a lot of experience in her past. Brooke promises she knows exactly what she’s getting herself into and she feels like she still has some distinct advantages over VanZant.
“I know that she’s had a couple of bare-knuckle [fights] but it’s still a little bit more awkward in the stances, it’s not exactly the same sport,” Brooke said. “I think that I probably have the advantage in the boxing ring.
“I am confident that I will win, but she is the hardest opponent to date. She’s a mixed martial artist. She’s been fighting her whole life. So she’s definitely more experienced than me, but I definitely feel I have the edge when it comes to boxing.”
The explosion of influencer boxing has brought a lot of people into combat sports with no actual background in fighting, which included Brooke when she first started.
She says the biggest difference between her and so many other people operating in the same space is that she’s truly fallen in love with the sport.
That’s what Brooke expects to carry her through the fight against VanZant and anybody else that Misfits throws her way in the future.
“Boxing is like the only thing I wake up in the morning for, in terms of my mental health and routine,” Brooke said. “It stresses me out and it kills me at the same time, but it gives me that discipline to do better in all aspects of my life. Like, I work hard in and out of the ring and I love what it’s taught me. It’s taught me to be confident about myself. I’ve learned several things about myself that I would have never known. It’s really testing me.
“I’ve absolutely fallen in love with the sport. I don’t even box for the money. The money’s good but I make way easier money elsewhere! That’s a piece of cake compared to boxing!.”
