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Who is Mackenzie Dern?
Mackenzie Dern returned to one of the most competitive and physically demanding sports, UFC, shortly after having a baby (Ultimate Fighting Championship). She returned for the information four months after the birth of her daughter.
Mackenzie began learning martial arts at a young age, thanks to her parents’ training.
Dern’s professional martial arts career has been successful due to her quick flexibility and discipline.
Not to add that Mackenzie is a former world no. 1 IBJJF fighter who is currently placed sixth in the female division.
In addition, she holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Who exactly is Mackenzie Dern?
Mackenzie Dern, the previous number one, is a professional mixed martial artist and UFC fighter.
Mackenzie Lynne Dern Santos is her full name.
She was born in Phoenix, Arizona, the daughter of Wellington “Megaton” Dias, a highly regarded grappling athlete, and her stepmother, Luciana Tavares, a black belt holder herself.
In some ways, Dern grew up knowing martial arts.
She, as expected, followed in her parent’s footsteps and began training at the age of three.
Similarly, with the encouragement of her parents, Dern began participating at an early age and later in the adult divisions at the age of 14.
Dern has two half-siblings, Korah and Merrick, aside from her early training.
Despite having been born in the United States, she is of Brazilian descent.
Dern learned to speak Portuguese, her first language, and English as part of her upbringing.
In addition, this American martial artist attended Ironwood High School in Glendale, Arizona.
She then went on to pursue a professional career in martial arts.
Age and Body Dimensions
Mackenzie Dern grew up surrounded by professional martial artists and began learning them at the age of three.
Dern, who is 29 years old, is still pursuing her profession as an MMA fighter.
Similarly, she was born on March 24, 1993, under the Aries star sign.
Not to mention that persons born under this sign are strong and competitive.
Dern measures 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighs roughly 52 kgs, thanks to his athleticism and supportive parents.
However, in martial arts, how you use them is more essential than how you are formed.
Dern, a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, also follows a strict training regimen to be in fighting shape.
Similarly, her regular training day begins with a morning run, followed by food and recuperation, followed by gym sparring.
Depending on the day of the week, she does wrestling, hitting, and grappling sessions.
Dern continues to train at her father’s BJJ facility, who is also her inspiration, trainer, and strongest supporter.
MMA Professional Career
As previously said, Dern acquired everything she knows about martial arts from her parents.
They have been extremely supportive of her career, and she has attained greater success as a result.
Before the age of 20, Dern had won a world championship in every belt she had worked her way up to, including the black belt.
Similarly, Mackenzie is the only female Jiu-Jitsu competitor to have won Black Belt Gold medals.
Mackenzie had a 4-0 record with Legacy Fighting Alliance before joining with Invicta Fighting Championship in November 2017.
On December 8, 2017, she made her debut against Kaline Medeiros at Invicta FC 26: Maia vs. Niedzweidz.
Dern won the bout with an armbar in the third round.
Similarly, Dern made her promotional debut at UFC 222 on March 3, 2018.
She won the match by a split decision over Ashley Yoder.
Following that, he faced Amanda Cooper at UFC 224 on May 12.
Mackenzie was fined 30% of her purse because she weighed more than seven pounds in a non-title strawweight battle.
Mackenzie Dern suffers her first MMA defeat
Despite the difficulties, Dern won the fight through a rear-naked choke in the first round.
Mackenzie returned to the ring on October 12, 2019, after a brief hiatus due to her pregnancy, against Amanda Ribas at UFC on ESPN+ 19.
Unfortunately, she was defeated by a unanimous decision.
In addition, she was scheduled to meet Ariane Carnelossi at UFC Fight Night 173 on April 25, 2020, but was forced to withdraw due to travel issues.
Another bout with Hannah Cifers has also been postponed.
Fortunately, their bout was eventually scheduled for May 30, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Woodley vs. Burns.
Furthermore, Mackenzie won with a first-round kneebar, becoming the first woman in UFC history to end a bout with any type of leg lock.
She also received her first Performance of the Night award that night.
She then faced Randa Markos at UFC Fight Night 178 on September 19, 2020.
Mackenzie comfortably won the bout by submission in the first round.
Not to mention, Dern received her second consecutive Performance of the Night award at the time.
Main Achievements of the IBJJF:
- IBJJF World Champion (2015)
- World No-Gi Champion of the IBJJF (2015*)
- (2015**) UAEJJF Abu Dhabi World Pro Champion
- Pan American IBJJF Champion (2016/2015)
- FIVE Super League Winners (2015)
- (2016/2015) IBJJF European Open Champion
- Champion of the Copa Podio Superfight (2013)
Main Achievements (Colored Belts):
- IBJJF World Champion (2012** brown belt, 2011 purple belt, 2010/2009/2008 blue belt)
- World No-Gi Champion of the IBJJF (2012/2011** brown, 2010/2009 blue + purple)
- Pan American IBJJF Champion (2012 brown, 2011 purple)
\FIVE Super League Winners (2015)IBJJF European Open Champion (brown in 2012, purple in 2011, and blue in 2010).
Defeating Gabi Garcia
Defeating Gabi Garcia Mackenzie took the Mixed Martial Arts world by storm when she defeated Gabi Garcia, the nine-time Women’s World Champion, despite a large weight disparity at the BJJ Open Weigh Tourny.
Mackenzie almost outweighed the 90 kg, Garcia, despite only weighing 55 kg at the time.
Injury
Mackenzie Dern, the grappling superstar, was dealing with an injury.
She, too, had to walk the path of suffering in order to achieve something.
She had a medial collateral ligament (MCL) injury in her knee during the World Championships in early June of 2018.
It took her six weeks to get back into shape following the procedure.
Furthermore, Mackenzie’s third victory in 2020, a unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) over Virna Jandiroba at UFC 256 on Saturday, Dec. 12, came after she injured her nose.
Personal Life and Husband
Mackenzie Dern has a successful love life in addition to a successful MMA and UFC career.
Yes, the 27-year-old UFC fighter is married, having married her partner, Wesley Santos.
Wesley is a professional surfer, for those who are unaware.
The couple was only together for a brief time and was first seen publicly in mid-2018.
Following that, the couple married, and on June 9, 2019, they welcomed their first child, a daughter called Moa.
Not to mention that Dern took a career break to give birth to her child.
Similarly, on June 10, Dern took to social media to reveal her kid to the world.
The small family appears to be living a happy life at the moment. Time alone will tell.
Furthermore, Dern has not been tied to any speculations or charges since her marriage.
But the situation had changed.
In 2018, the professional UFC fighter was dating Marcus Buchecha Almeida and was even seen at parties with him.
Unfortunately, they split up later that year.
Dern was engaged to her then-fiance, Augusto Tanquinho Mendes, before marrying Santos.
The two became well-known as Jiu-Jitsu couples.
They called off their engagement and split up for an undisclosed cause.
Wesley Santos, Mackenzie Dern’s husband, gets into a fight with Coach Juan Gomez
The UFC world was abuzz this week after a physical altercation between instructor Juan Gomez and surfer Wesley Santos.
Unfortunately, the striking coach is more concerned with his profession than with his physical issues.
Wesley, better known as Mackenzie Dern’s husband, argued with the instructor after Gomez summoned her and Santos to the Black House gym in Los Angeles.
Similarly, she believes it has something to do with monetary settlement for her previous fight.
To clarify, Gomez was in the same room as Dern’s father, Wellington, and coach, Bubba Jenkins, when she defeated Hannah Cifers at UFC on ESPN 9 in May.
When the media questioned Gomez, he did not elaborate on what caused the schism but indicated that he still had “love” and “respect” for Mackenzie and her husband.
“It kills me to see this interview from her talking about the bonus, which was never my concern.”
Never. People need to know the truth about this.
What occurred between myself and her spouse had nothing to do with money or bonuses.
Several reasons contributed to this.
It was nothing major, and I believed we had turned the page.”
Furthermore, he explained how he approached Dern and apologized.
“A couple of days ago, I approached her friend, her wrestling coach, and apologized to her.
Because I still like her in the end. Finally, I see our friendship. I want what is best for her.
I wish her well in her fight.”
However, Gomez did address the matter between him and Santos that caused them to clash.
It appears that it all started when Santos began taking greater responsibility for Dern’s battles.
Even if he does not consider Santos to be a “bad person,” Gomez obviously believes that Santos is ignorant of the MMA industry.
What’s the story with Mackenzie’s accent?
In April 2021, Mackenzie continued her winning streak with a victory over Nina Nunes, but people began to question her accent: is it false or does she naturally speak in this manner?
No, it does not. Mackenzie is an American professional MMA fighter who was born in Phoenix, Arizona.
However, she has a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and was previously the IBJJF number one rated female and a two-time BJJ world champion.
Wellington “Megaton” Dias, a well-known BJJ black belt from Rio de Janeiro, is Mackenzie’s father.
She is also married to a professional Brazilian surfer who, like her, speaks Portuguese at home.
Essentially, while Mackenzie is a US citizen, her ancestors are Brazilian.
She also continued to travel between Brazil and Arizona with her father to practice her painting when she was younger.
Mackenzie was frequently asked about her accent, which she viewed as a compliment.
Furthermore, she was astounded to notice that people were paying far more attention to her accent than to her performance.
Dern and UFC reporter Ariel Helwani discussed fan-created movies depicting the change of Dern’s accent from typical Arizonian to massive Brazilian drawl. She simply laughed it off.
Furthermore, a video of her responding in scouse accent native tongue to Liverpool again after spending a day in Liverpool became viral.
Following in the footsteps of Conor McGregor, UFC Lightweight Champion
Mackenzie Dern has announced her intention to enter the UFC after defeating former Golden Gloves champion Katherine Roy at LFA 6 on March 10, 2017.
Mackenzie also stated that she intends to follow in the footsteps of Conor McGregor.
She has also reportedly signed with Paradigm Sports Management, which represents a number of MMA’s greatest personalities, including Conor McGregor, Israel Adesanya, Michael Page, and Cris Cyborg.
Estimation of Net Worth and Income
According to what we know, Mackenzie’s money comes from her martial arts career.
Despite the awards and her great career, Dern’s net worth is currently unknown.
Her actual earnings are similarly unknown to the general public.
However, according to online sources, her net worth is estimated to be around $1.5 million.
Dern earned $50,000 in her first UFC fight and an additional $29,000 with a $3,500 fight week incentive pay in her second UFC fight at UFC 224.
Unfortunately, as lucrative as the cash is, UFC also fines players heavily for breaking the rules.
Mackenzie found out the hard way when she was fined $13,050 for being underweight in the strawweight division.
Also, read Daniele Garozzo,
How a $2.8 million bargain uncovered the NBA’s “flawed” system, Battle of the tops: Bucks vs Nets
Presence on Social Media
829k Followers on Instagram
43.8k Followers on Twitter
