Brazilian Jiu Jitsu star Mackenzie Dern has huge plans for her MMA career and is looking towards Conor McGregor for inspiration.
Dern is 23-years-old and is already making a name for herself in MMA. Despite having a professional career spanning little more than eight months, the IBJJF number one ranked female black belt on the planet has racked up three wins.
Speaking with MMA Fighting recently, the supremely talented grappler stated that she is aiming to follow in the footsteps of MMA’s biggest name, Conor McGregor, in her pursuit of two UFC titles. Dern sees the achievement as a prerequisite to retirement at 30 years of age:
“I’ll try to follow [Conor] McGregor’s footsteps. The best in the world always have goals to achieve.”
“If I can win two belts by 27, I’ll stop earlier. I want to win the belt and defend it, but I wanna know the right time to stop fighting. The best in the world always set new goals, but we never know when is the right time to stop. We always want more. I wanna know when it’s time to stop.”
While certainly on the radar of the world’s premier MMA promotion, Dern is still yet to have obtained an indication of receiving a contract from Dana White and co. However, her victory over Katherine Roy at the LFA 6 event on Friday night will have done her aspirations no harm whatsoever.
One concern for dern will be her ability to make weight, however. The fight was rescheduled as a 120 lb catchweight bout after the BJJ star failed to make the 115 lb strawweight limit, which was not the first time that she has struggled to hit the scales according to plan. Dern took Roy the distance, earning a unanimous decision in the process (29-26, 30-27,30-27).
In order to mix it with the best of the best in the UFC, the Phoenix, AZ native must also improve her striking skills. Needless to say, Mackenzie Dern will one day soon appear inside the octagon under the UFC banner.
