Mackenzie Dern
USA
Newest holder of UFC gold
Dern won the vacant UFC Women's Strawweight Championship on Saturday, defeating Virna Jandiroba via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47) at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi.
ANALYSIS
It was a typical Dern fight in the sense that it was very entertaining, although massively sloppy at times. Mackenzie, by no means a great striker herself, was the much more effective competitor on the feet. She was at her best when she was pushing forward and firing off jabs at Jandiroba. Dern allowed nine takedowns on 17 attempts, but as is always the case, she remained active off of her back and often won those exchanges simply because Virna always struggles to generate any offense despite her positional advantages. As talented as Mackenzie is from a submission standpoint, giving up that many takedowns is going to burn her in the long run. Dern will be 33 years old in late-March. Despite this win, she's still just 6-4 in her past 10 fights dating back to April 2021. Mackenzie is both popular and marketable, so the UFC has to be thrilled with this result, but she doesn't appear to have the skill set to hold the belt through multiple title defenses. One thing Dern does have going for her is that the 115-pound female division is woefully thin at the moment.
It was a typical Dern fight in the sense that it was very entertaining, although massively sloppy at times. Mackenzie, by no means a great striker herself, was the much more effective competitor on the feet. She was at her best when she was pushing forward and firing off jabs at Jandiroba. Dern allowed nine takedowns on 17 attempts, but as is always the case, she remained active off of her back and often won those exchanges simply because Virna always struggles to generate any offense despite her positional advantages. As talented as Mackenzie is from a submission standpoint, giving up that many takedowns is going to burn her in the long run. Dern will be 33 years old in late-March. Despite this win, she's still just 6-4 in her past 10 fights dating back to April 2021. Mackenzie is both popular and marketable, so the UFC has to be thrilled with this result, but she doesn't appear to have the skill set to hold the belt through multiple title defenses. One thing Dern does have going for her is that the 115-pound female division is woefully thin at the moment.
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Competing for strawweight title
Dern will face Virna Jandiroba at UFC 321 in Abu Dhabi on Oct. 25, MMAFighting.com reports.
ANALYSIS
Dern is set to face Jandiroba for the second time in her professional career, as she previously brought home a victory in December of 2020 via submission (armbar). However, Dern will be fighting for the vacant strawweight title this time around, perhaps adding even more fuel to the fire.
Dern is set to face Jandiroba for the second time in her professional career, as she previously brought home a victory in December of 2020 via submission (armbar). However, Dern will be fighting for the vacant strawweight title this time around, perhaps adding even more fuel to the fire.
Gets revenge on Amanda Ribas
Dern defeated Amanda Ribas via submission (armbar) at 4:56 of Round 3 at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
Dern gets revenge on Ribas, who won the first fight between the two back in October 2019 via unanimous decision. Mackenzie's striking isn't a strength and she's not a good wrestler, but she's as talented as any female fighter on the roster in terms of her ground game, and it showed here. Both women had their moments in the bout, but Dern's ability to outmuscle Ribas on the mat and eventually work for the armbar ended up being the difference. No slouch herself on the mat, it was the first submission defeat for the Brazilian. Set to turn 32 years of age in late-March, Dern has now won back-to-back fights. Even with those two victories, she's still just 4-4 in her past eight bouts dating back to October 2021. It's likely more inconsistency will be on the way shortly. In the meantime, she'll take home an extra $50,000 as one of two Performance of the Night recipients.
Dern gets revenge on Ribas, who won the first fight between the two back in October 2019 via unanimous decision. Mackenzie's striking isn't a strength and she's not a good wrestler, but she's as talented as any female fighter on the roster in terms of her ground game, and it showed here. Both women had their moments in the bout, but Dern's ability to outmuscle Ribas on the mat and eventually work for the armbar ended up being the difference. No slouch herself on the mat, it was the first submission defeat for the Brazilian. Set to turn 32 years of age in late-March, Dern has now won back-to-back fights. Even with those two victories, she's still just 4-4 in her past eight bouts dating back to October 2021. It's likely more inconsistency will be on the way shortly. In the meantime, she'll take home an extra $50,000 as one of two Performance of the Night recipients.
Fighting in December
Dern will take on Amanda Ribas in a flyweight matchup at UFC Vegas 101 on Jan. 11, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Dern will look for her second win of 2024 after besting Lupita Godinez via unanimous decision earlier in August. The American strawweight will take on Ribas for the second time in her career, with the first fight ending in a unanimous decision victory for Ribas back in 2019.
Dern will look for her second win of 2024 after besting Lupita Godinez via unanimous decision earlier in August. The American strawweight will take on Ribas for the second time in her career, with the first fight ending in a unanimous decision victory for Ribas back in 2019.
Snaps brief losing streak
Dern defeated Lupita Godinez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Abu Dhabi.
ANALYSIS
Dern has had trouble in these close bouts throughout her career, so it was nice to see her get over the hump here against Godinez. Neither woman was able to gain much separation throughout the course of the fight. Mackenzie's opening round was the best of the three. She landed a takedown, racked up some control time, and finished the frame with a 49-17 edge in total strikes landed. Godinez got the bout even in Round 2 before Dern pushed the pace early in Round 3, landing another takedown and eventually doing just enough to earn the decision. Dern is now 31 years old and has proven capable of a quality performance here and there, but her 3-4 mark in her past seven fights dating back to October 2021 suggests she still isn't among the division's elite at this stage of her career.
Dern has had trouble in these close bouts throughout her career, so it was nice to see her get over the hump here against Godinez. Neither woman was able to gain much separation throughout the course of the fight. Mackenzie's opening round was the best of the three. She landed a takedown, racked up some control time, and finished the frame with a 49-17 edge in total strikes landed. Godinez got the bout even in Round 2 before Dern pushed the pace early in Round 3, landing another takedown and eventually doing just enough to earn the decision. Dern is now 31 years old and has proven capable of a quality performance here and there, but her 3-4 mark in her past seven fights dating back to October 2021 suggests she still isn't among the division's elite at this stage of her career.
Godinez up next
Dern is scheduled to compete against strawweight Lupita Godinez at UFC Abu Dhabi on Aug. 3, per Dana White's announcement Wednesday.
ANALYSIS
Most recently, Dern took a relatively short-notice fight against Amanda Lemos and lost via unanimous decision at UFC 298. The former will look to bounce back by defeating Godinez, recently coming off a loss to Virna Jandiroba but ranked No. 10 in the UFC's strawweight rankings after earning four consecutive wins before said defeat.
Most recently, Dern took a relatively short-notice fight against Amanda Lemos and lost via unanimous decision at UFC 298. The former will look to bounce back by defeating Godinez, recently coming off a loss to Virna Jandiroba but ranked No. 10 in the UFC's strawweight rankings after earning four consecutive wins before said defeat.