Mackenzie Dern showcased her dominance in the main event of UFC Fight Night in Las Vegas, earning a unanimous decision victory over Angela Hill.
While Dern by submission was a popular bet ahead of the bout, the two-time jiu jitsu world champion couldn’t add to her record number of submissions despite numerous attempts. Dern currently holds the record for most submission wins in UFC strawweight history, but spent much of the 25-minute fight in clinches or controlling the fight on the ground.
Hill displayed impressive defense, thwarting numerous armbar attempts. However, she accumulated significant punishment in the process, leaving the cage with a swollen face and a nearly shut left eye. Nevertheless, she managed to gut it out until the final bell.
The judges’ scores reflected Dern’s superiority, with two judges scoring the fight 49-44 in her favour and the third judge scoring it 49-43.
Although Dern is known for her grappling expertise, it was her standup game that propelled her to success in this fight. While her initial takedown attempts failed, she managed to bring the fight to the ground in the first round with a powerful right hand that dropped Hill. In the third round, Dern further rocked her opponent with a lead knee strike to the chin.
Dern, who was coming off two losses in her previous three fights, displayed her striking abilities by landing a career-high 126 significant strikes. Notably, 61 of those strikes were landed while in control on the ground, where she spent a considerable portion of the fight. Hill, on the other hand, landed 66 significant strikes, surpassing Frankie Edgar for the second-most in UFC history. Her Octagon career total now stands at 1,820 significant strikes, placing her behind only Max Holloway’s 3,122.
Following the victory, Dern called out former champion Rose Namajunas, expressing her desire to face an ex-champion for the first time. The 30 year old earned Fight of the Night honours for her impressive performance, while extending her MMA record to 13-3.
Rounding out the bonuses on the evening were Viacheslav Borschev and Carlos Diego Ferreira who each earned Performance of the Night nods as well.
Main Card
Mackenzie Dern def. Angela Hill via unanimous decision (49-43, 49-44, 49-44)
Anthony Hernandez def. Edmen Shahbazyan via TKO (strikes) at 1:01 of Round 3
Loopy Godinez def. Emily Ducote via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Joaquin Buckley def. Andre Fialho via KO (head kick) at 4:15 of Round 2
Diego Ferreira def. Michael Johnson via KO (punch) at 1:50 of Round 2
Preliminary Card
Viacheslav Borshchev def. Maheshate via TKO (punches) at 2:37 of Round 2
Karolina Kowalkiewicz def. Vanessa Demopoulos via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Gilbert Urbina def. Orion Cosce via TKO (strikes) at 2:55 of Round 2
Rodrigo Nascimento def. Ilir Latifi via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Chase Hooper def. Nick Fiore via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
Natalia Silva def. Victoria Leonardo via TKO (strikes) at 2:58 of Round 1
Themba Gorimbo def. Takashi Sato via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Photo: Dietmar Rabich. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.