Athletes
Mackenzie Dern Is Putting Her Lessons Into Action
Looking To Break Into The Title Picture, Mackenzie Dern Is Set To Take On A Familiar Face In Her Fourth Main Event
Much like the calendar turning to a new year, a rematch—especially one more than five years in the making—is a great reason to reflect before heading into the fray once more. In Mackenzie Dern’s case, her main event rematch with Amanda Ribas is exactly that and more. Ribas represents her first professional loss, so revenge is on the mind, but it also provides a measuring stick to see how much she has developed in the intervening years.
Dern ripped off four consecutive wins to put herself in the thick of the crowded and talented Top 10 of the strawweight division and amassed a 7-4 record since fighting Ribas. Meanwhile, Ribas made her way into both the strawweight and flyweight rankings, going 5-4 (3-1 at strawweight) while testing herself against some of the best at 125 and 115 pounds.
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Five years later, Dern and Ribas are different women, and the circumstances are different as well. No longer prospects, the battle-tested Top 10 contenders are hopeful a win on January 11 will kickstart a run toward the strawweight title picture. That’s not to say lessons weren’t learned and carried from their October 2019 clash, however.
“I think the biggest thing that I take from that fight, which is what I'm trying to implement in my game and my lifestyle today, is just being calm and patient, taking on things a little bit slower,” Dern told UFC.com.
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The 31-year-old also ponders whether she took the fight with Ribas too quickly after giving birth to her daughter, Moa, just three months prior.
Hypotheticals aside, Dern benefitted greatly from the experience, bouncing back with a quartet of wins that pushed her into the rankings all the same. She also earned three main event slots since then, going 1-2 in her forays into five-round fights while Ribas recently experienced the same for the first time, losing a decision to Rose Namajunas last spring.
Mackenzie Dern | Submission Showcase
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Mackenzie Dern | Submission Showcase
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“I'm definitely falling each time more and more in love with having five rounds,” Dern said. “It gives me a little bit more time to work, and I feel like my cardio and my strength comes in the later rounds, even though I like to go hard from the beginning.”
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As far as the rematch of it all, Dern expects a “smarter” approach from both sides. She hopes to bring a better awareness of where she is in the Octagon for this fight, as well as show off what she feels is an improved blending of her skills. While her striking has improved progressively, she hopes to show off a better sense of mixing her boxing into her takedowns.
Although a spotless record is admirable, so is bouncing back from defeat and molding oneself into a more dangerous fighter. Dern believes she has done so successfully, and her 4-1 record following a defeat speaks to that.
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“It's been amazing, fighting such top-level fighters,” she said. “It's given me a lot of time to be able to see that I have the potential to be there with them and that I’m meant to be here. Obviously, when I'm fighting, it's maybe a little bit tough and everything, but once I go back and watch the fight, I see like, ‘OK, it's just little mistakes.’ It's just little things. It really just comes down to experience.”
When she makes the final walk of the night on January 11, she does so confident and hopeful that she is kicking off a run toward title contention. The strawweight strap is up for grabs in a month at UFC 312 when champ Zhang Weili defends her title against long-standing contender Tatiana Suarez, and a result either way presents plenty of opportunities for the rest of the division.
While the submission ace is fully focused on her rematch with Ribas, she also understands a win on Saturday gives her “leeway.” She would find herself coming off back-to-back wins in a wide-open division, and winning always opens more doors than otherwise.
“I think that basically any one of us who are the top girls, if we have a few consecutive wins, we could all make that slide into the title contender spot, especially if someone maybe gets hurt or pulls out,” she said. “I think as long as we have a couple of wins in a row, then that will really set us up.”
UFC Fight Night: Dern vs Ribas 2 took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on January 11, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!