This is the UFC 321 live blog for Virna Jandiroba vs. Mackenzie Dern 2, the vacant strawweight championship co-main event Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
Jandiroba and Dern battle for a 115-pound title left vacant by Zhang Weili, who moves up a division to fight flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 322 on Nov. 15. In their first meeting in December 2020, Dern won a unanimous decision over Jandiroba.
A 12-year veteran, Jandiroba (22-3) is on the hottest streak of her UFC career having rattled off five straight wins to force herself into the championship conversation. When Zhang made the decision to fight Shevchenko, it guaranteed that Jandiroba would be one half of a vacant title bout. Jandiroba has won five straight, including knocking off one-time title challengers Yan Xiaonan and Amanda Lemos, to earn her spot.
Dern (15-5) has had a rocky road to the top, but she recently avenged a loss to Amanda Ribas in emphatic fashion by submitting Ribas with an armbar, a clear sign of Dern’s evolution. The elite grappler began her MMA career in 2016 with plenty of hype behind her following a decorated Brazilian jiu-jitsu career. Now, she is one win away from adding a UFC title to her impressive trophy collection.
Check out the UFC 321 live blog for Virna Jandiroba vs. Mackenzie Dern 2 below.
It’s actually happening, Mackenzie Dern is one good performance away from becoming UFC champion. How many of you sold your Dern stock, be honest.
On the other side, we’ve got Virna Jandiroba, who has been working towards this goal just as long. She could be moments away from joining the list of former Invicta FC champions to wear UFC gold.
Subscribe to my channel
