Mackenzie Dern News

Tom Taylor - May 11, 2018

Tomorrow night, the UFC will take over Rio de Janeiro’s Jeunesse Arena with UFC 224. On Friday morning, the 26 fighters on the card’s 13-fight bill took to the scales to weigh in for their imminent battles. As always, the weigh-ins included a high dose of drama. This time, that drama came courtesy of grappling star Mackenzie Dern.

Tom Taylor - May 3, 2018

Back in March, on the undercard of UFC 222, BJJ star Mackenzie Dern made a successful UFC debut, defeating a tough Ashley Yoder by decision. Shortly after this first Octagon win, she was asked to leave her long-time gym, Arizona’s MMA Lab. “In relation with the Lab, after my last fight, Coach [John] Crouch, he just invited me to leave the team,” Dern said at a media luncheon promoting her UFC 224 fight with Amanda Bobby Cooper (transcribed by Marc Raimondi for MMA Fighting). “I think really we don’t have a 100-percent understanding. I think he knows his decisions more than me. I think with just the consistency, he wanted me to be there more often than what I was, but everything happens for a reason.”

Drake Riggs - March 26, 2018

Everybody loves to be the person who stops a so-called ‘hype train’. They’re those cases where one gets to prove that maybe they’re the ones who deserved some of the spotlights over those who were hogging it all up(whether by their choice or not). In this case, it’s fair to say that highly touted young prospect and BJJ wizard, Mackenzie Dern has herself a bit of a hype train rolling and she even admits it. So why wouldn’t her next opponent, Amanda Cooper be wanting to stop that?

Drake Riggs - March 14, 2018

The twenty-four-year-old undefeated Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu phenom, Mackenzie Dern finally made her UFC debut earlier this month when she defeated Ashley Yoder at UFC 222 by split decision. With a UFC return to Brazil on the horizon, Dern made it very clear that she wanted to get on the card if possible. And that appears to be the case. MMABrasil reports that Dern’s sophomore appearance in the UFC will come against The Ultimate Fighter season 23 finalist, Amanda Cooper on May 12th.

Tom Taylor - March 4, 2018

Last night, on the undercard of UFC 222, decorated BJJ player Mackenzie Dern made her anticipated Octagon debut opposite the game Ashley Yoder. Despite a few moments of adversity, the increasingly popular Dern was able to do enough to capture a unanimous decision victory and secure her first Octagon win.

Chris Taylor - March 3, 2018

UFC 222 Results: Mackenzie Dern defeats Ashley Yoder A women’s strawweight fight between Mackenzie Dern and Ashley Yoder served as the featured bout of tonight’s UFC 222 prelims in Las Vegas.

Tom Taylor - January 1, 2018

Mackenzie Dern, a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu ace who has carved out a solid 5-0 record as a professional mixed martial artist, has finally signed with the UFC. The bright young prospect will make her long-awaited Octagon debut at UFC 222 on March 3 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Her opponent will be Ashley Yoder. This news was first reported by MMAFighting.com.

Drake Riggs - December 7, 2017

Mackenzie Dern is one of the brightest prospects in all of MMA. The world championship BJJ black belt has gotten her career off to a hot start, going 4-0 with two spectacular submission victories and two dominant unanimous decisions. The only issue is that in two of Dern’s three fights at the 115 lb Strawweight division she has missed weight, and not by close margins. Invicta FC 26 is tomorrow and that means that the weigh-ins were today! And fortunately for Dern, all went according to plan and she weighed in right at 115.

Tom Taylor - September 19, 2017

BJJ whiz Mackenzie Dern is now ready to take the next steps of her MMA career. According to a report from MMAJunkie.com, which was confirmed by Dern herself on Instagram, this next step will occur at LFA 24 on October 13 inside Comerica Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona. Dern’s opponent will be Mandy Polk. https://www.instagram.com/p/BZOG89lFBAp

Tom Taylor - April 22, 2017

Yesterday, it was reported that BJJ star and rising MMA talent Mackenzie Dern had failed to make weight for the Abu Dhabi World Pro jiu jitsu championship, and that she had been scratched from the tournament bracket as a result. Dern was expected to face Belgian brown belt Amal Amjahid in the opening round. One day removed from the news of this weigh-in miss, Dern has now released a statement, clarifying that she did not miss weight for the event, but that she decided to remove her own name from the tournament because she was not feeling up to par. Dern made her statement on Instagram.

Tom Taylor - April 21, 2017

Mackenzie Dern is one of the best female grapplers on earth. Having gone 3-0 in the cage, she’s also one of the brightest young stars in women’s MMA. If there’s one knock against the Brazilian-American grappling star, however, it’s that she seems to have real difficulty keeping her competition weight in check. Her indiscretions in this area are becoming quite numerous. She missed weight for her sophomore mixed martial arts bout, tipping the scales at 118.8 lbs rather than 115. She also missed weight for her third MMA bout, clocking in at 120. Now, Dern has missed weight again, this time failing to reach the required 55 kg (121 lbs) for the Abu Dhabi World Pro Tournament. As a result, Dern has been removed from the tournament.

Tom Taylor - April 4, 2017

Though Mackenzie Dern came up short on the mats last weekend, giving up a choke to three-time world champion Bia Mesquita in the absolute division of the IBJJF’s Rio Falls event, she remains one of the most talked-about names in the grappling world. Having gone 3-0 in the cage, she’s also emerging as one of the hottest prospects in mixed martial arts. While Dern’s recent focus has been on her Brazilian Jiu Jitsu roots, she is planning on a return to mixed martial arts competition at a to-be-determined date this summer. Contrary to recent statements and reports, however, her return to the cage will likely not mark her debut in the UFC’s Octagon. This news was first reported by BJPenn.com’s Tom Taylor, who spoke to Dern’s manager.

Russell Ess - October 25, 2016

Mackenzie Dern is well-known in the world of Brazilian jiu-jitsu. The BJJ black belt has a long list of accolades that include ADCC Champion, World Champion, World Pro Champion and No Gi World Champion. Now, the daughter of Wellington “Megaton” Dias is getting into mixed martial arts and holds a 2-0 record, fighting under Legacy FC. However, Dern is eyeing a UFC debut perhaps as early as 2017.

bjpenndotcom - October 15, 2016

Mackenzie Dern vs Montana Stewart #Legacy61 @TheMMALAB @MackenzieDern OH MY GAWD! Omoplata RNC pic.twitter.com/gM31KLOsHc — Zombie Prophet (@ZPGIFs) October 15, 2016

Chris Taylor - September 4, 2016

23-year-old strawweight fighter Mackenzie Dern made her professional mixed martial arts debut at July’s Legacy Fighting Championship 58 event in Louisiana, where she earned a unanimous decision victory over Kenia Rosas.

bjpenndotcom - September 4, 2016

The number one female black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu could very well be the hottest woman in MMA as well. Mackenzie Dern, the 23-year-old submission phenom, posted a video of herself on Instagram showing her in more than just fighting shape.

Russell Ess - August 9, 2016

23-year-old Mackenzie Dern made her MMA debut at LFC 58 in July. The jiu-jitsu wizard put on a dominating performance for all three rounds of her fight with Kenia Rosas and ended up winning a unanimous decision. Dern is honing her MMA skills with former UFC lightweight champion and current Bellator star Benson Henderson at The MMA Lab in Arizona. Henderson spoke on The MMA Hour on Monday and talked about Dern’s potential.

Russell Ess - August 1, 2016

One of the top female Brazilian jiu-jitsu competitors made her professional MMA debut at LFC 58 in July and is getting a lot of new fans with her transition to the new sport. The highly decorated Mackenzie Dern has already notched World Champion, World No Gi Champion, ADCC and many more titles under her belt and is looking to add some MMA titles to her trophy room.