Defeated in her last fight, Mackenzie Dern promises progress on her return to the UFC

M. Dern is one of the highlights of the UFC strawweight division. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram

Defeated by Marina Rodriguez last October, at straw weight (up to 52,2kg) Mackenzie dern revealed that he wants to learn good lessons from the setback. In an interview with 'MMA Junkie', the Brazilian fighter promised to evolve her game for her return to Ultimate and reinforced that, if she is well trained, she is capable of defeating any opponent in the organization.

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“I wasn't able to show how much I had improved in my fight with Marina. I wasn't advancing as much as I normally do. We always need to learn, whether we win or lose. Even in my victories, I always go back to the drawing board to try to improve on different things. I'm not happy I lost, but I'm not heartbroken. As soon as the fight was over, I knew I had about ten things I needed to improve. The next day, I went back to the gym, talked to my trainer and we defined what I needed to work on. Next time, if it's a rematch against Marina or another fight, they will watch a much more versatile fighter. This loss was definitely one of the best things that happened to me, just to give me a better vision of how I can improve,” said Mackenzie.

The Brazilian fighter believes that she was close to a title fight and believes that in a short time, she will be able to defeat any opponent in the 52,2kg category.

“I think if I had won this fight with Marina, the UFC would have put me up to fight for the title. This defeat was very important, because I don't think I was ready. At the time, I thought I was ready, but once I realized I lost it, it was okay. This loss was at a good time. Maybe, I would take a beating in the title fight. I definitely think everything is at the right time. Now, I think I can beat anyone in the top five. Obviously, I can't make mistakes or things like that, but I think a focused, well-trained Mackenzie can beat any of the girls, no matter what happens, no matter who has the belt. I will be prepared”, concluded Dern.

Riding on four consecutive victories, Mackenzie was stopped last October after being defeated by her compatriot Marina Rodriguez. Number five in the strawweight rankings, the Brazilian athlete has a record of 11 triumphs and two setbacks in professional MMA.