We all use social media, but sometimes, using platforms like Facebook or Twitter, now known as X, can do more harm than good for people. When people see an argument playing out in the form of social media comments, they have two options to choose from: Scroll past and move onto something else or break out the popcorn and see what happens next.
What happened on social media earlier this week was cause for the latter scenario to play out. The latest dust-up to take place on the Internet had two former MMA fighters going at it.
One might have called this one “The Thrilla on the Website Formerly Known as Twitta.”
VanZant vs. Danis: The War of Words
The parties involved in this dispute have been known to spend time in the cage. UFC alum and BKFC fighter Paige VanZant and onetime Bellator MMA competitor Dillon Danis engaged in a war of words on Twitter.
VanZant is already scheduled to fight inside the boxing ring in a few weeks time. Over the Memorial Day holiday weekend, she’s due to appear on DAZN’s Misfit Boxing against Elle Brooke, an adult entertainer, in Dallas. The wife of Bellator middleweight Austin Vanderford has been making the rounds of social media in support of the May 24 match.
This is where it got ugly: Dillon Danis accused VanZant of infidelity against her husband after saying that Danis wasn’t a legitimate competitor.
Dillon Danis’ Comments
“How fast they forget”, Danis tweeted. “Haha, relax. Paigey, baby, just because I didn’t wife you doesn’t mean you have to be petty. Don’t make me bring up our two trips to Vegas and ruin your marriage.”
How fast they forget! Haha, relax, Paigey baby, just because I didn’t wife you doesn’t mean you have to be petty. Don’t make me bring up our two trips to Vegas and ruin your marriage. https://t.co/yisMPZl4YO pic.twitter.com/4OQTgE1cDc
— Dillon Danis (@dillondanis) May 1, 2024
As you might recall if you paid for the fight on DAZN last October, Danis was the opponent of YouTube celebrity Jake Paul in the main event of a card that proved to be nothing more than a big joke. If these two people were civilians and this scenario happened, the dirty laundry would have been aired on a tabloid talk show in the middle of the afternoon for millions of viewers to see.
After reading Danis’ original comments, VanZant defended herself in an expletive-laden rebuttal.
Paige VanZant’s Remarks
Comments edited for coarse language.
“So, it has come to my attention that there is a certain clown on Instagram by the name of Dillon Danis trying to talk some (expletive deleted) and stir up some drama, so let’s (expletive deleted) go, right?”, VanZant began. “So, Dillon, obviously I said you’re not a ‘real’ fighter. My bad, I triggered you. I understand that hurt your feelings. But instead of coming back and talking (expletive deleted) about me, saying that I’m not a real fighter, what did you do? You kind of (expletive deleted) yourself, right?”
Paige VanZant just destroyed Dillon Danis
Danis allegedly wanted PVZ to peg him ☠️ pic.twitter.com/SaB9XfDLEM
— MMA Mania (@mmamania) May 2, 2024
“You backed yourself into a corner, because now you have to come with proof of this alleged affair right?,” VanZant continued. “The only time I remember seeing you in Vegas was at the UFC athlete retreat. You walked up to me in a bar, asked me to peg you in front of multiple other UFC fighters and I laughed in front of your face. That’s not the definition of a relationship, is it? And stirring up drama on the Internet to try to fight my husband, there’s definitely better ways that you could handle that.”
The Aftermath
VanZant re-shared the video on her own social channels with Danis accusing her of using theatrics to get her point across in a reply.
Coarse language excised.
“You’re crying in that video because you know I have receipts,” Danis posted. “You sell your (expletive deleted) and nasty botched (expletive deleted) job pics because you were a terrible fighter and have to support your deadbeat husband, a failed fighter turned OnlyFans (expletive deleted), who can’t even support you financially.”
Danis Clearly in the Wrong
If the late Jerry Springer were still alive and still doing his talk show, he’d receive record ratings for a story like this. Throughout the run of the show, he did countless crazy stories like this one.
That aside, Dillon Danis is the worse party of the two in this latest dust-up. Attempting to wreck a marriage, and especially doing so while making outrageous, spurious claims is the worst possible thing that anyone can do.
A baseless accusation can and will obliterate a person’s reputation. It’s even worse when you know the person in question because then you have to watch them go through it.
After the fight in Dallas, Paige VanZant should get her attorneys on the phone at the first possible moment. This is defamation of character at the core.
Final Thoughts
In a fight, unless there’s a draw, somebody’s getting their hand raised at the end of the contest. Nobody wins when making a baseless accusation.
