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Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) standout, Mackenzie Dern, easily made the flyweight limit for her Amanda Bobby Cooper fight at the UFC 224 pay-per-view (PPV) event back in May of 2018, tipping the scale at a lean-and-mean 123 pounds.
Unfortunately for Dern, their fight was contracted at strawweight.
So as you might expect, more than a few eyebrows were raised when the promotion announced her 115-pound return against Amanda Ribas at UFC Tampa in October, but it looks like motherhood may actually work in her favor.
“I’m just six pounds over the limit and I still have seven weeks left,” Dern told MMA Fighting. “I know that breastfeeding helps burn calories without even noticing it, plus all the training. My weight is fine, I’m actually surprised. My idea is to burn the fat I got because of the milk and all that, and add muscle. The UFC is sending me meals every day and that helps me a lot because I have no time to cook with the baby.”
Dern (7-0) has two consecutive wins under the UFC banner after racking up a perfect 5-0 record on the regional circuit, split between Invicta Fighting Championship and Legacy Fighting Alliance. Her UFC debut weight cut went off without a hitch.
Much like Julianna Pena before her, Dern is hoping to come back and prove she can balance being a mom with being a full-time fighter. The first test will be her UFC Tampa weigh in on Oct. 11 in “The Sunshine State.”