Mackenzie Dern has come a good distance.
As soon as upon a time, the previous IBJJF and ADCC World Champion was only a Jiu-Jitsu star attempting to display his expertise contained in the cage. At the moment, she grew to become a champion once more, defeating Vilna Jandilova at UFC 321 to win the promotion’s vacant 115-pound title.
Dern’s efficiency over Jandiroba by a 249-208 margin was not solely the crowning of a brand new strawweight queen, but additionally the fruits of years of laborious work and dedication to honing her expertise and turning into one of the well-rounded blended martial arts fighters contained in the Octagon.
And the most effective is but to return.
“Think about what sort of beast I might be if I might carry every part I’ve achieved for this camp to the group,” Dern stated throughout an look on The Ariel Helwani Present. “I educated this nicely for eight weeks, proper? Think about if I lived every single day like this for the remainder of my life. In fact I am recovering now, however it feels bizarre not doing what I have been doing for the previous eight weeks. I need to hold doing it extra.”
“Think about what sort of beast I could possibly be if I might preserve every part I’ve achieved for the group and this camp and preserve it for six months, a full yr, or three years.”
Mackenzie Dern is prepared for first challenger
It stays to be seen what Dern will do subsequent, however we do know that the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu phenom is not shying away from taking over among the baddest ladies within the division.
“I am not going to be like a child champion,” Dern stated. “I need to be what they (UFC) need us to be — you recognize what I imply? We’re prepared, and we practice for it. I need to beat the most effective — I am the most effective proper now, however I would like to have the ability to beat whoever comes alongside.”
“…I believe it’s most likely the identical man who has a profitable streak,” she stated of her first title protection opponent. “I believe it is smart for (Chang) Weili to go on a profitable streak, even when she loses to Valentina (Shevchenko), as she is a former champion. And Tatiana (Suarez) is coming off a win.”
Whereas Weili Zhang is presently busy getting ready for her long-awaited battle with Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 322 on November fifteenth, Suarez is solidifying her place because the No. 2 contender within the division with a shocking upset victory over Amanda Lemos.
