Mackenzie Dern is sticking with strawweight.
It’s no secret that Dern has had issues making weight. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace recently tipped the scales seven pounds over the strawweight limit. She was two pounds off from being a flyweight going into her bout with Amanda Cooper. It was the third time in Dern’s professional mixed martial arts career where she failed to make the contracted weight.
After submitting Cooper, many wondered if Dern would finally move up to the 125-pound division. Dern is going to work with the folks over at the UFC Performance Institute to manage her weight. While the UFC initially considered asking Dern to move up, it doesn’t look like that’ll happen.
Speaking to Combate, Dern said she’ll be staying in the strawweight division (via MMAMania.com):
”Everyone here agrees I have a body type that fits at strawweight, in the category that I am, so the plan is to continue in it. But we want to diet and train so that I do not have to cut so much weight, I’ll cut very little. After the fight, I will not go up that much. Regardless of what will be decided on the weigh-in, whether or not it will return for the afternoon, it will not change my situation much, because, the way they want me to be the best possible athlete, it will be a very quiet thing.”
Dern is an undefeated prospect with a professional MMA record of 7-0. In her seven victories, she has submitted four of her opponents. Dern is 2-0 under the UFC banner. Controversy ensued when Dern entered the top 15 strawweight rankings despite missing weight. Her bump kicked Angela Hill off the rankings, which caused Hill and Felice Herrig to blast those in charge of the list. The following week, Dern was removed from the rankings and Hill was back in the top 15.
Do you think Mackenzie Dern can fix her weight issues to stay as a strawweight?
