Mackenzie Dern reacts to ‘biggest learning experience,’ UFC Vegas 39 loss to Marina Rodriguez

Mackenzie Dern may have had her four-fight winning streak snapped on Saturday, but she came away with a lot of learning lessons and an extra $50,000 in her bank account.

Dern lost a unanimous decision to Marina Rodriguez in the main event of UFC Vegas 39. The jiu-jitsu specialist had a dominant second round where she had her opponent on the mat for over four minutes, yet Rodriguez was able to survive and win the final three rounds. The 115-pound headliner was awarded the event’s Fight of the Night award.

While Rodriguez moves on to a big fight with hopes of a future strawweight title opportunity, Dern goes back to the drawing board, as she revealed in a statement on Sunday via her Instagram.

“Yesterday wasn’t the result I was training for, but this fight is the biggest learning experience for me,” Dern stated. “Now I have a lot to look back on and fix to become a better fighter! For sure a submission would have been great but to have these rounds for me to work on is such a blessing.”

After becoming a mom, Dern returned to action following a 17-month layoff and lost a unanimous decision to Amanda Ribas at UFC Tampa in October 2019. She went on to pick up submission wins over Hannah Cifers, Randa Markos, and Nina Nunes, along with a hard fought unanimous decision over Virna Jandiroba at UFC 256.