Mackenzie Dern is coming up on one of the biggest fights of her career at UFC 295 on November 11th, 2023 as she faces former strawweight world champion Jessica Andrade. Dern is just outside of the top 5 in her division and Andrade is sitting right on the edge, so when the fight between them was announced it was clear that someone could be within touching distance of a title-shot at the end of it. Given that Andrade is currently on a three-fight losing streak and Dern is one of the best grapplers in the UFC right now, it looked like a fantastic opportunity for her to propel herself up the rankings.
Every fighter experiences changes and difficulties during a fight-camp, but Dern recently revealed at the UFC 295 media day that she’s actually undergone a little more than most:
“RVCA closed so I basically made my own home gym. You just keep investing in your dream and hope that it works. I’m trying to make everything private at home because you’re just very vulnerable when everyone’s seeing your training. I’m a world champion in jiu-jitsu but people see me in the gym and I’m crying, I’m frustrated because I feel I should be better at something. I feel like I should be able to get it and I don’t get it. It’s not working.”
“My whole life when I was training to be a world champion in jiu-jitsu, my best times of being a world champion was when I had a routine and I had a schedule and you’re able to keep focused. I think that’s why it’s hard to be a mom and try to be a world champion, to be the champion in the UFC because you need to be consistent in your training. When you don’t feel you’re consistent in your day-to-day life, one day is this, one day is that, you’re like I just need to train. You just make it work.”
The full pre-fight interview with Mackenzie Dern for UFC 295 was uploaded to the official YouTube channel of MMAFighting:
