Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas squared off in a Strawweight contest earlier tonight (Sat., Jan. 11, 2025) at UFC Vegas 101 inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Dern opened the fight by circling the Octagon and firing low kicks. Both women tried to find their range with straight punches, but neither could really line up their shots. Instead, the kicks were landing for both. Dern switched it up about halfway through the round with a nicely timed double leg takedown, dragging her foe to the floor. She wasn’t able to get much done from within the guard of Ribas, but Dern controlled her foe to the bell and landed some chipping shots.
Though it wasn’t the most eventful round overall, this was still a strong showing from Dern compared to their first bout.
Dern went back to the takedown to start the second, and Ribas reversed her way into top position smoothly. Somewhere in that grappling exchange, Ribas’ face was split open. Nevertheless, she managed to maintain top position and avoid any submission attempts from her opponent … until a Dern omoplata attempt landed her in top position with a minute remaining! It was a fascinating exchange, but it also wasn’t enough to win back the round.
Ribas seemed to have found her range by the third, using the Southpaw stance to take away the low kick. Dern pushed her way into the clinch and worked for a takedown, only to get reversed for the second time. After a bit of control time for Ribas, Dern attacked a tight armbar from her back. It took a minute, but Dern managed to sweep her foe into mount by threatening the armbar. From that dominant position, Dern landed some heavy shots then attacked the arm again! Just before the time ran out, Dern was able to fall back on the arm and break the grip, forcing the tap.
This was a great show of development from Dern. She’s still far from flawless, but clearly, she has more options than in their first match up and is generally better at mixing up the martial arts. The addition of low kicking was an interesting facet of her game, and hopefully it continues to grow more effective for her.
At the end of the day, however, that legendary jiu-jitsu is what got the job done.
Result: Dern defeats Ribas via third-round armbar
For complete UFC Vegas 101 results and play-by-play, click here.