This is the UFC Abu Dhabi live blog for Mackenzie Dern vs. Loopy Godinez, the main card strawweight matchup on Saturday evening.
A multiple-time world champion in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Dern joined the UFC in 2018 and while she’s carved out a solid career, she’s yet to truly live up to the massive expectations fans had for her. Dern’s jiu-jitsu is obviously world class, but the rest of her game has not caught up, resulting in a number of losses against the top opposition at 115 pounds, including back-to-back defeats against Jessica Andrade and Amanda Lemos. If Dern has any hope of getting to a title shot one day, she needs to stop the skid with a win on Saturday.
A highly-touted prospect when she entered the UFC back in 2021, Godinez has looked like a world-beater at times, while also falling short in big moments. Heading into this year, Godinez was on a four-fight win streak and appeared to be surging towards a title fight until a loss to grappling ace Virna Jandiroba once again derailed her plans. Now Godinez has an opportunity to beat another world-class grappler and get back on track in the division.
Check out the UFC Abu Dhabi main card strawweight matchup live blog below.
