[ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED DECEMBER 16, 2020, 2:43 PM]
Mackenzie Dern believes that when all is said and done, her name will surpass Ronda Rousey’s in the record books.
Mackenzie Dern has often been compared to Ronda Rousey, in part because of her entrance into the UFC as an undefeated submission artist. Dern entered the UFC with a 5-0 record, with the majority of her wins coming by submission; and Rousey came into the promotion with a 6-0 record, with each of her wins by submission. But for Mackenzie Dern, it wasn’t actually until her second UFC fight until she started noticing the comparisons.
“That started when I started with my knockdown of Amanda Cooper, I knocked her down then got the submission, I started kinda building my own style,” Dern said at the UFC 256 post-fight press conference. “Ronda has a great style, aggressive, but I think when I start to get the leg locks I have something different, really different, the jiu-jitsu, these leg locks from the bottom, where people think you’re losing.”
Unfortunately for Mackenzie Dern, she would lose her next fight following this victory in a unanimous decision loss to Amanda Ribas. Since then, though, Dern has won three consecutive bouts, including a unanimous decision this past Saturday at UFC 256 over Virna Jandiroba. This is only the beginning of a run Dern believes will be historic and set her apart from all of her peers, including legends like the oft-compared Ronda Rousey.
“I kind just set my goal on breaking records,” Dern. “Ronda broke records, I’m gonna break more records. I’m just focused on that, one straight line, you know the horse has the [blinders]. It was a pleasure for me that everyone was saying that, but it was pretty easy for me to focus on my own goals and try to be a legend.”
Do you believe Mackenzie Dern will have a better MMA career than Ronda Rousey’s when all is said and done?
