A potential women’s strawweight clash between rising contenders Mackenzie Dern and Marina Rodriguez is currently in the works.
UFC president Dana White revealed earlier this week that Dern would face Rodriguez in her next fight. However, White didn’t include many specifics but did reveal that the matchup is more or less done.
White said, “She does have a fight coming up. I was just talking about her this morning. We haven’t announced it, I’m sure, but I’ll give it to you, anyway. Hopefully, it’s done. My people hate when I do this. She’s taking on Marina Rodriguez next, which is a great fight.”
Dern is coming off an impressive submission victory over Nina Ansaroff in April, which extended her current winning streak to four fights.
With the win, the BJJ prodigy improved her overall UFC record to 6-1 and is now tied for the most submission wins in UFC women’s history with four. When Dern made her debut in 2018, she was supposed to compete for the women’s strawweight championship, and a victory over Rodriguez later this year may put her there.
White stated, “Since she had a baby, she’s come back and looked like she has been reborn again. She is a whole different fighter, physically, emotionally, mentally, technically, everything. She is completely changed.”
Rodriguez is coming off a stunning main event debut against Michelle Waterson earlier this month, where she won by unanimous decision to improve to 4-1-2 in the UFC.
Since her debut in 2018, the Brazilian challenger has been pitted against the best in the division and has improved with each appearance within the octagon. Rodriguez’s TKO victory over Amanda Ribas at UFC 257 in January remains her biggest win to date.
Read more: “Want to take on the greatest fighters”: Kayla Harrison wants to get golden UFC entry ticket