What Next For Mackenzie Dern?
The first fight card of 2025 is in the history books, and what a start to the year it proved to be. Mackenzie Dern (15-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC) pulled off a picture-perfect armbar finish over Amanda Ribas (13-6 MMA, 7-5 UFC) in the third round of an enthralling main event, while the rest of the UFC Vegas 101: Dern vs. Ribas 2 fight card delivered an avalanche of impressive knockout finishes.
UFC debutatants Jacobe Smith and Marco Tulio announced their arrival into the big leagues with devastating finishes over Preston Parsons and Ihor Potieria, while Cesar Almeida pulled off an early contender for 2025’s ‘knockout of the year’ as he flatlined Abdul Razak Alhassan.
FINISHED THE JOB IN THE FIRST ROUND 💥
Cesar Almeida took care of business at #UFCVegas101! pic.twitter.com/KGswlx4ejo
— UFC (@ufc) January 12, 2025
A Huge Victory In The Main Event for Mackenzie Dern
As impressive as some of the performances on the card may have been, none of them were executed by ranked fighters. Except, of course, that main event between Dern and Ribas.
Both fighters came into this one sitting pretty in the top ten of the women’s strawweight rankings. Mackenzie Dern in sixth, two places above Ribas, whom she lost to in her third UFC appearance way back in 2019.
Having already been above Ribas in the standings prior to beating her on Saturday night, Dern is unlikely to see any change in that regard when the rankings are updated in the coming days. That isn’t to say, however, that she doesn’t stand to gain forward momentum from her impressive victory.
Where Do We Go From Here After Mackenzie Dern’s Win Over Ribas?
Despite the emphatic nature of her win in Saturday’s main event, Mackenzie Dern was reluctant to call her shot during her post-fight interview. “I just want to get another win in a row” she told Michael Bisping in the Octagon after the fight. “I don’t know who that will be (against), I would hope someone in front but I’ve fought almost everyone in front. The only one (I haven’t fought) I think is Tatiana (Suarez) and she’s going for the belt, so I don’t know. We’ll see”.
Tatiana Suarez (10-0 MMA, 7-0 UFC), the number one-ranked challenger in the strawweight division, is booked to challenge Weili Zhang (25-3 MMA, 9-2 UFC) for her strawweight title in the co-main event at UFC 312 in Australia next month.
In between Dern and Suarez in the rankings sit four fighters who Dern has faced before. Virna Jandiroba (3rd place) who Dern beat at UFC 256 just over four years ago, and the trio of Yan Xiaonan (2nd place), Jessica Andrade (4th place) and Amanda Lemos (5th place), who have all defeated Mackenzie Dern since 2022.
Mackenzie Dern is one of the more marketable assets the UFC has in its female divisions. This past weekend was her third time headlining a UFC event and it’s likely the matchmakers will look up the rankings when it comes time to select her next opponent, although a title charge doesn’t seem to be a priority for the 31-year-old.
“My idea isn’t to go fight for the belt and then lose it fast” she told reporters at the post-fight press conference. “My idea is to get the belt and I want to be, like, a dominant champion, you know? So I’m not in a rush to get there, I want to have good fights and I want to make a statement”.
Who Are The Most Likely Options To Face Mackenzie Dern?
Regardless of Dern’s wishes to take her time and focus on her development rather than gatecrash the title discussion, her two-fight winning streak separates her from some of the chasing pack at 115 lbs.
Jessica Andrade is coming off a loss (against Natalia Silva in September) in her last outing, while Amanda Lemos is already booked to face Iasmin Lucindo at UFC 313 in March. This leaves only Virna Jandiroba and Yan Xiaonan (19-4 MMA, 9-3 UFC) as viable options of the UFC are to pair Dern with a higher-ranked opponent.
Xiaonan received a shot at the title at UFC 300 last April but came up short against the champion, but the Team Alpha Male representative bounced back with a masterful performance over five rounds against Tabatha Ricci in her native China in November, and it’s possible she could face Mackenzie Dern in a ‘number one contender’ match-up next time out.
Jandiroba (21-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) is riding a four-fight winning streak since losing to Amanda Ribas at UFC 267 back in 2021 and the Brazilian would surely bite the UFC’s hand off for the opportunity to avenge her loss to Dern in December of 2020.
It’s also possible the UFC matchmakers may see Jandiroba as a slightly easier option for Mackenzie Dern in the event that they want to shoehorn her into the title picture at the expense of Yan Xiaonan.
Either way, Dern’s performance at the UFC Apex on Saturday night offered some compelling evidence that the former BJJ world champion is growing and improving as a fighter and her win over Ribas will has helped her gather up a head of steam going into 2025. Big opportunities are on the horizon for the Phoenix, Arizona native.
