LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JANUARY 11: Mackenzie Dern reacts after a submission victory against Amanda … [+] Ribas of Brazil in a strawweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on January 11, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Mackenzie Dern picked up her first submission win in nearly four years when she stopped Amanda Ribas via armbar in the waning moments of the third round of their UFC Vegas 101 main event contest. The UFC Fight Night strawweight matchup was a rematch of a 2019 meeting between the two. That fight ended with Ribas picking up a decision win. With her loss on Saturday, Ribas is in the midst of a two-fight losing skid, the first of her career. I look at the results, reactions, video highlights, and more from the UFC Vegas 101 fight card main event: Mackenzie Dern vs. Amanda Ribas 2.
UFC Vegas 101 was the first fight card on the 2025 UFC schedule. The UFC Fight Night event took place on Saturday, January 11, from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The entire fight card streamed on ESPN+. The next card on the UFC schedule is the UFC 311 pay-per-view card, which is scheduled for Saturday, January 18, at Intuit Dome in California.
UFC Vegas 101 Results: Dern Vs. Ribas 2 – Round 1
When the opening betting odds for the main event of UFC Vegas 101 were announced, Dern was the +146 betting underdog to Amanda Ribas, who checked in as the -171 betting favorite. Dern was listed at +155 when the fight began, while Ribas was -185.
The fight opened with both women looking to establish position and range on the feet. Most of the early strikes were kicks thrown from distance. However, Dern and Ribas switched from kicks to punches within the first minute of the bout. Ribas’ hands and movement were much crisper than that of Dern, whose movement was awkward and punches were slower and wilder than those of her foe.
Neither fighter could hold the center of the Octagon for long as they both pushed forward at times, looking to land strikes.
Halfway through the first stanza, Dern ducked under a right hand from Ribas, which allowed her to secure a takedown into her opponent’s guard.
Ribas was active off her back initially, looking to land some strikes. Still, she quickly went into a defense-first posture to prevent Dern, a highly-skilled jiu-jitsu practitioner from finding an opening to secure a submission.
The first round was very close. Neither fighter did much damage on the feet, and Dern’s work on the ground was limited. She did not look for a submission, nor did she have the space to do damage with her strikes.
The judges had the round 9-10, 10-9, 10-9 in favor of Dern.
Dern landed 12 of 25 significant strikes, while going one for one in takedowns and picking up 2:36 of control time. Ribas landed 10 of 33 attempted significant strikes.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JANUARY 11: (L-R) Mackenzie Dern battles Amanda Ribas of Brazil in a strawweight … [+] fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on January 11, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
UFC Vegas 101 Results: Dern Vs. Ribas 2 – Round 2
The second round began much like the first, with both fighters looking to land kicks. However, Dern, perhaps emboldened by her success in the first round, shot for a takedown less than 20 seconds into the round. She failed on her attempt, with Ribas taking top position on the mat.
Despite being on her back, Dern opened a cut on her opponent’s head with elbows from the bottom very early into the round. Dern was also looking for an opening to lock up a limb from her back. Knowing Dern’s ground skills, Ribas was careful not to open herself up to a submission, preventing her from doing much damage from top position.
Halfway through the round, Ribas became more active with her strikes. She stayed close to Dern without putting her hands on the mat, which would have played into Dern’s grappling game.
With a minute left in the second round, Dern found a small opening and looked to secure a shoulder lock, which was not close to earning her a finish, but it did allow Dern to scramble to top position to end the second stanza.
With most of the round battled on the ground, there were not a lot of significant strikes landed, with Dern going three for three and Ribas three for six. Ribas was credited with a takedown and 3:31 of control time, while Dern had 0:19 of control time.
The judges had the second round in favor of Ribas 9-10, 10-9, 10-9.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JANUARY 11: (R-L) Mackenzie Dern grapples with Amanda Ribas of Brazil in a … [+] strawweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on January 11, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
UFC Vegas 101 Results: Dern Vs. Ribas 2 – Round 3
More kicks were thrown to open the third stanza, but that approach did not last long, as Ribas quickly adjusted to an aggressive forward-pressure boxing style. Ribas’ punch attempts allowed Dern to shoot for another takedown, but Ribas thwarted the attempt. However, Dern stayed glued to her opponent, forcing the fight to the fence, where both fighters were active with knees in close. From that position, Ribas got the fight to the mat.
The takedown put Ribas in top position, but there was a decent amount of space between here and Dern in the early moments of the battle on the mat. Both women looked to land elbows on the mat.
With a little more than two minutes left in the round, Dern found the time and space she needed to pursue an armbar. Dern was patient on her back. At the same time, Ribas looked to stack Dern, which prevented Dern from locking in the armbar.
With one minute left in the round, Dern reversed position and released her armbar while moving into mount. From that dominant position, Dern landed strikes, which gave her the opening she needed to secure an armbar, which she locked in and forced Ribas to tap with four seconds left in the round.
The loss was the first submission setback of Ribas’ career and Dern’s first submission victory since she forced Nina Nunes to tap in April 2021.
The stats in the third round had Dern landing 12 of 18 significant strikes while earning 1:39 of control time with one failed takedown. Meanwhile, Ribas landed four of 17 significant strikes, had a takedown, and 2:16 of control time.
The victory earned Dern a “Performance of the Night” bonus, her first such award since her win over Nunes.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JANUARY 11: (R-L) Mackenzie Dern secures an arm bar submission against Amanda … [+] Ribas of Brazil in a strawweight fight during the UFC Fight Night event at UFC APEX on January 11, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
UFC Vegas 101 Results: Dern Vs. Ribas 2 Video Highlights
UFC Vegas 101: Mackenzie Dern On Her UFC Vegas 101 Win Over Amanda Ribas
After the event, Dern spoke to the media about her win and the potential of a title fight against the winner of the upcoming UFC 312 matchup between Zhang Weili and Tatiana Suarez.
“I think I’m very hard on myself, and I always try and get better,” said Dern. “Even when I have a great performance I think that I did so many things wrong. It’s a lot of play messing in your head, so it can take your dream and maybe makes it a little bit longer, but in the end I think it makes you evolve to be the best fighter possible, if you can really look back and have constructive criticism on yourself.
“My idea isn’t to go fight for the belt and lose it fast. My idea is to get the belt, and I want to be a dominant champion. So, I’m not in a rush to get there. I want to have good fights and make a statement.”
With the results of UFC Vegas 101 in her favor, Dern should move up the rankings. She entered the event as the No. 6 fighter in the official UFC strawweight rankings.
