Mackenzie Dern News

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.

Chris Taylor - October 13, 2017

Mackenzie Dern improved her mixed martial arts record to a perfect 4-0 at Friday night’s LFA 24 event, scoring a first-round submission victory over Mandy Polk. After unfortunately missing weight in her last two bouts, a 2016 Submission of the Year contender over TUF 26 competitor Montana Stewart at Legacy FC 61, and a decision defeat of Katherine Roy at LFA 6, Dern seems to have found the perfect home at flyweight. Check out Mackenzie Dern’s impressive finish below:

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 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.

Tom Taylor - April 2, 2017

Mackenzie Dern is one of the most recognizable names in grappling. Having gone 3-0 in MMA – including a 2016 Submission of the Year contender over Montana Stewart – she’s also becoming one of the biggest names in women’s mixed martial arts.

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.

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.

Chris Taylor - August 14, 2016

Strawweight prospect Mackenzie Dern was unable to finish Kenia Rosas in her mixed martial arts debut at Legacy 58, but the current number one pound-for-pound grappler did put on a dominating performance. Dern spoke to MMAFighting‘s Ariel Helwani about the fight and outlined her future goals in the sport: “I’m always confident in my jiu-jitsu, especially since it was Kenia Rosas’ pro debut, and it was my first fight, so I was definitely confident in my jiu-jitsu,” Dern told Ariel Helwani on a recent edition of The MMA Hour. “I hoping to get a submission, but, man, she was so flexible and very tough.

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 - July 22, 2016

A video posted by TATAME (@tatamemagazine) on Jul 21, 2016 at 3:13pm PDT

Russell Ess - May 21, 2016

https://youtu.be/DazOERxmXcY Newly signed Legacy FC fighter Mackenzie Dern will make her MMA debut at 115 pounds on July 22 in Dallas, Texas against an opponent that is yet to be named.