Strawweight Nina Ansaroff will return to the Octagon after giving birth to a baby girl in September, and she will reportedly be facing a rising star.
Much like her next opponent, UFC strawweight contender Nina Ansaroff is not one to sit out for too long after giving birth. According to ESPN’s Brett Okamoto’s report, Ansaroff will take on Brazilian jiu-jitsu star Mackenzie Dern, who notably stepped back into the Octagon merely four months after her daughter Moa was born back in October 2019.
Ansaroff’s return will happen only seven months after Nina gave birth to her daughter Raegan in September. The baby’s other parent, of course, being none other than UFC double champ Amanda Nunes.
Breaking: Strawweight fight between Nina Ansaroff (@NinaAnsaroff) and Mackenzie Dern (@MackenzieDern) is in the works for April 10, per sources. Not signed, but both sides like it. First appearance for Nina since the birth of her and Amanda Nunes’ daughter Raegan in September.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) December 21, 2020
In her last outing, Ansaroff (10-6) dropped a unanimous decision to Tatiana Suarez in June 2019. Before that, the 35-year-old was on a four-fight winning streak, with victories over Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger, Angela Hill, Randa Markos, and Claudia Gadelha.
After a successful 2020, in which Dern (10-1) scored wins over Hannah Cifers, Randa Markos and Virna Jandiroba, the 27-year-old sees no reason to wait around for her next outing. She wanted to get back into the Octagon in early 2021 in order to fight for the title by the end of the year. Dern’s sole loss came in October 2019, when she dropped a unanimous decision to Amanda Ribas.
Nina Ansaroff is expected to take on Mackenzie Dern at an undisclosed event, on April 10. So far, no other bouts were announced for the card.