Tag: Mackenzie Dern

Amanda Lemos scores decision victory over Mackenzie Dern in epic three-round war – UFC 298 Highlights

Mackenzie DernMackenzie Dern and Amanda Lemos closed out the UFC 298 prelims with a bang on Saturday night. Stepping in…

Mackenzie Dern

Mackenzie Dern and Amanda Lemos closed out the UFC 298 prelims with a bang on Saturday night.

Stepping in for a short-notice showdown with the one-time UFC title challenger, Dern showed her heart and determination throughout the three-round affair, never backing down even when she was battered and bloody in the second round.

Dern’s lead leg was compromised in the early going due to a series of vicious calf kicks courtesy of Lemos, but that didn’t stop Dern from marching forward and letting her hands go. However, Lemos nearly scored a finish in the second when Dern came rushing in and caught a counter that immediately busted up the Brazilian-American beauty’s nose.

Still, Dern never let up and narrowly escaped with a victory in the third after controlling a majority of the round with her world-class BJJ.

But despite her best efforts, it was Lemos who would have her hand raised after 15 grueling minutes.

Official Result: Amanda Lemos def. Mackenzie Dern via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Check Out Highlights From Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Lemos at UFC 298:

Joe Rogan’s ruthless commentary made UFC 298’s Mackenzie Dern cry: ‘This is so embarrassing’

Mackenzie DernJoe Rogan made Mackenzie Dern cry. On Saturday night, February 17, the strawweight fan favorite will return to the…

Mackenzie Dern

Joe Rogan made Mackenzie Dern cry.

On Saturday night, February 17, the strawweight fan favorite will return to the Octagon at UFC 298 determined to get back into the win column after delivering a lackluster performance in her last outing against former champion Jessica Andrade.

After putting on the performance of a lifetime against Angela Hill six months prior, Dern looked like a complete novice against Andrade, earning criticism from Rogan who was on hand to offer his expertise.

“She’s flailing (arm punches) and her chin is up in the air. Look at her, that’s crazy,” Joe Rogan said moments before Dern suffered her first stoppage loss. “At this level, to have that lack of awareness in those exchanges is crazy.”

“We saw it coming,” Rogan added following the finish. “It’s like she regressed in her striking from her last performance.”

Rogan wasn’t the only one to pour on the criticism while watching the fight from the commentary table. Daniel Cormier added that “she gets a little lost when the exchanges get a little long and wild” while Din Thomas suggested that they need to “fire whoever told her to get rid of Jason Parillo.”

Watching back her second-round knockout loss to Andrade, Dern was heartbroken to hear Rogan and his commentary compatriots lambasting her performance.

“When I heard the commentary like Joe Rogan, D.C., and stuff, that for me, that was — I felt embarrassed — I felt bad,” Dern said on an appearance on Morning Kombat. “I was like, ‘Dang, how did I just fight Angela Hill in May with like the best performance, and now they’re saying I look like a freakin’ high school girl brawling and stuff like that?’

“For me, they’re the kind of critics that can influence a lot of people with what they say commentating. Man, I can’t believe they said that about me. I looked like that?! Then I started remembering, well, the same way they said good stuff about me they’ve said bad. It goes back and forth. It’s their job, they’re going to commentate no matter what. I still love them and everything like that. So, it wasn’t too bad,” she said.

“Just that first moment I watched the fight I was crying, like this is so embarrassing, oh my gosh” (h/t Bloody Elbow).

Mackenzie Dern sees UFC 298 return as a ‘must-win’ situation

Dern will look to erase the memory of her loss to Andrade when she steps inside the cage with one-time UFC title challenger Amanda Lemos in a short-notice showdown. Lemos is coming off a lopsided decision defeat at the hands of reigning strawweight queen Zhang Weili.

As for Dern, the Brazilian-American beauty has alternated wins and losses in her last five outings, besting Tecia Torres and Angela Hill, but coming up short against Marina Rodriguez, Yan Xiaonan, and the aforementioned Jessica Andrade. Dern goes into her UFC 298 clash with ‘Amandinha’ believing it is a must-win situation.

“On a personal level, (this fight) is a must-win,” Dern said.

Video – Bobby Green gets hilariously distracted as Mackenzie Dern weighs in ahead of UFC 298

Bobby Green distracted by Mackenzie DernWe were all thinking it, but Bobby Green was the one who said it. On Saturday night, February 17,…

Bobby Green distracted by Mackenzie Dern

We were all thinking it, but Bobby Green was the one who said it.

On Saturday night, February 17, the UFC returns to the Honda Center in Anaheim, California for UFC 298. In the main event of the evening, featherweight king Alexander Volkanovski will put his belt on the line for the sixth time when he meets undefeated challenger Ilia Topuria.

Fans will also be treated to an electrifying co-main event when one-time title challenger Paulo Costa makes his long-awaited comeback against former middleweight world champion Robert Whittaker.

But first, all 24 fighters had to step on the scale during Friday morning’s official weigh-in ceremony. Joining regulars Dan Hellie, Laura Sanko, and Michael Bisping on the broadcast was top-15 ranked lightweight contender Bobby Green, who found himself a bit distracted when strawweight standout Mackenzie Dern made her way to the scale.

“Sheeeeesh,” Green uttered as Dern stepped onto the stage looking… Fit.

Dern will look to bounce back following a lackluster performance against former ex-champ Jéssica Andrade at UFC 295 in November. The Brazilian-American beauty has alternated wins and losses in her last five outings, earning wins over Tecia Torres and Angela Hill while falling to Marina Rodriguez, Yan Xiaonon, and the aforementioned Andrade.

Standing in Mackenzie Dern’s way of a return to the win column is Amanda Lemos. ‘Amandinha’ will be competing for the first time since coming up short in her first UFC title opportunity against reigning strawweight queen Zhang Weili in August.

Mackenzie Dern Details fallout from her divorce ahead of UFC 295: ‘This whole fight is still paying my ex’

Mackenzie DernMackenzie Dern hopes that someday soon, she can look back and see all of the chaos behind her instead…

Mackenzie Dern

Mackenzie Dern hopes that someday soon, she can look back and see all of the chaos behind her instead of constantly surrounding her.

Ahead of her clash with Angela Hill in May, news broke that Dern was in the middle of a tumultuous divorce with her ex-husband that also included a custody battle for their daughter. By the time fight night rolled around, her divorce had been finalized, but as anyone who has gone through the process knows, it rarely ends with the paperwork.

“I realized we always have problems,” Dern said during the UFC 295 media day. “Just the pressure. The last one I went through the divorce. The divorce is final but you don’t realize how much aftermath there is to it. Literally, this whole fight is still paying my ex. It’s crazy, I have to get punched in the face and you work so hard and you do all this and you have to like pay that much of something.

“Money’s something, I’ll fight here, I’ll get it, whatever. Winning or losing, everything’s going to be taken care of. I’ll make more [money] and stuff like that but it’s just problems” (h/t MMA Fighting).

Adding to the chaos ahead of her highly anticipated return to the Octagon on Saturday night was the closing of her gym. To compensate, Dern set up a private training facility in her home and spent some time training with former two-division UFC titleholder Henry Cejudo.

“RVCA closed so I basically made my own home gym,” Dern explained. “You just keep investing in your dream and hope that it works. I’m trying to make everything private at home because you’re just very vulnerable when everyone’s seeing your training. I’m a world champion in jiu-jitsu but people see me in the gym and I’m crying, I’m frustrated because I feel I should be better at something. I feel like I should be able to get it and I don’t get it. It’s not working.

“There’s injuries and there’s a ton of stuff that keeps going on and you’re like I just want to be able to train and get better. I don’t know. In the fight it comes out. It all works out.”

Mackenzie Dern Refuses to use her personal struggles as an excuse

Slowly becoming a master of the chaos, Mackenzie Dern decided to inject a new dynamic into her home.

“I got a new puppy — I think I even invent more problems, more chaos,” Dern said with a laugh. “I thrive on that, the craziness. The puppy and all these things. Getting used to splitting your daughter half of the time with you, half of the time with the dad and all these things. You’re learning so many new dynamics in your routine.

“My whole life when I was training to be a world champion in jiu-jitsu, my best times of being a world champion was when I had a routine and I had a schedule and you’re able to keep focused. I think that’s why it’s hard to be a mom and try to be a world champion, to be the champion in the UFC because you need to be consistent in your training. When you don’t feel you’re consistent in your day-to-day life, one day is this, one day is that, you’re like I just need to train. You just make it work.”

Dern did make it clear that she was by no means creating excuses for herself, recognizing that other fighters deal with these same personal issues all the time. In fact, her UFC 295 opponent, Jessica Andrade, revealed that she was also going through a divorce ahead of Saturday’s showdown.

“It definitely wasn’t easy but I understand that’s what everyone goes through,” Dern said. “Everyone’s having problems. Everyone has injuries, we’re fighters. I think Jessica, she talked about she had a divorce, too. It’s kind of crazy the fans get to watch us let out all of our stress and everything on another person in a fight but that’s what we’re trained for. That’s what makes the victory more special.”

Mackenzie Dern enters her fight with Andrade alternating wins and losses in her last four bouts. Overall she is 8-3 under the UFC banner and on the cusp of a potential strawweight title opportunity. With a big win over ‘Bate Estaca’ in Madison Square Garden, Dern’s next fight could very well be for UFC gold.

Mackenzie Dern books Octagon return against ex-Champion for UFC 295 in November at Madison Square Garden

Mackenzie Dern UFC 295 fight against Jessica Andrade in NovemberBrazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace, Mackenzie Dern has booked her return to the Octagon at UFC 295 later this year, drawing former undisputed strawweight champion, Jessica Andrade in November at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Dern, the current number eight ranked strawweight contender, has been sidelined from active competition since headlining UFC Vegas 73 back […]

Mackenzie Dern UFC 295 fight against Jessica Andrade in November

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace, Mackenzie Dern has booked her return to the Octagon at UFC 295 later this year, drawing former undisputed strawweight champion, Jessica Andrade in November at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Dern, the current number eight ranked strawweight contender, has been sidelined from active competition since headlining UFC Vegas 73 back in May, landing a decision win over veteran common-foe, Angela Hill in a headlining honors. The outing earned both Dern and Hill post-event Fight of the Night honors.

As for Andrade, the Brazilian former titleholder will make her whopping fifth Octagon walk of the year in her return at UFC 295 in November, attempting to snap a run of three consecutive loss, which was recently bookended by a guillotine choke submission loss to Tatiana Suarez at UFC Fight Night Nashville earlier this month. 

Mackenzie Dern books return against Jessica Andrade

News of Mackenzie Dern’s clash with the returning, Jessica Andrade was first confirmed during the broadcast of UFC 292 over the course of the weekend.

13-3 as a professional, decorated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace and submission grappler, Dern rebounded to the winner’s enclosure in her outing against Hill, having previously dropped a majority decision loss to Yan Xiaonan in a headlining clash.

Over the course of her Octagon tenure, Arizona native, Dern has racked up impressive wins over the likes of Amanda Cooper, Virna Jandiroba, Nina Nunes, as well as Tecia Torres to name a few. 

A former undisputed strawweight champion, Andrade landed divisional spoils with a stunning slam KO win over former two-time titleholder, Rose Namajunas back in 2019 in her native Brazil. 

UFC 295 takes place on November 11. from Madison Square Garden in New York City, with an undisputed heavyweight title fight between champion, Jon Jones, and former division gold holder, Stipe Miocic slated to take headlining honors. 

Who wins between Mackenzie Dern and Jessica Andrade at UFC 295?

Mackenzie Dern shared one complaint Dana White had with her dominant win over Angela Hill

Mackenzie DernMackenzie Dern received some criticism from Dana White following her dominant win over Angela Hill last month. Dern scored by far the most impressive win of her mixed martial arts career thus far, moving to 8-3 in the UFC with a 25-minute shellacking of strawweight mainstay Angela Hill. It was a perfect performance that saw […]

Mackenzie Dern

Mackenzie Dern received some criticism from Dana White following her dominant win over Angela Hill last month.

Dern scored by far the most impressive win of her mixed martial arts career thus far, moving to 8-3 in the UFC with a 25-minute shellacking of strawweight mainstay Angela Hill. It was a perfect performance that saw Dern in complete control for five rounds. Mixing up her striking and world-class grappling, the photogenic BJJ specialist left Las Vegas with her hand raised via a decisive unanimous decision.

However, Dern revealed that Dana White had one very specific gripe regarding Mackenzie Dern’s otherwise spectacular outing.

“I went to talk to him, he told me how he liked the fight, talked to me about the knee,” Dern said during an appearance on the Believe You Me podcast. “He said ‘You could’ve knocked her out if you hit her more’…and I was like, what did I do? My first reaction was to take her to the ground and just grapple, so I still don’t know what that’s like to connect on someone get the knockout” (h/t MMA News).

Mackenzie Dern Earned Her Fifth UFC Performance Bonus

Mackenzie Dern appeared to be on the cusp of a finish multiple times during her Fight Night headliner, at one point landing an absolutely brutal knee in the clinch that nearly put ‘Overkill’ away. To Hill’s credit, she continued to move and fight her way out of every situation that had fight-ending potential. In the end, Dern’s improved striking matched with her impeccable grappling game was too much for Hill to overcome.

The bout was given Fight of the Night honors and earned Mackenzie Dern her fifth $50,000 performance bonus in 11 fights with the promotion.

The win moved Dern into the No. 7 spot in the strawweight rankings and will likely tee her up for a top-five opponent in her next outing.