Rising strawweights Mackenzie Dern and Marina Rodriguez will collide in a five-round headlining bout at a UFC Fight Night event on Oct. 9, multiple people with knowledge of the booking told MMA Fighting. ESPN first reported the matchup.
The promotion has yet to officially announce the event and its location, but the card is expected to take place at Las Vegas’ UFC Apex and air live on ESPN+. Dern and Rodriguez are ranked No. 5 and 6, respectively, in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings.
Dern (11-1) is on a four-fight winning streak with a trio of first-round submissions over Nina Nunes, Randa Markos, and Hannah Cifers, boosting her octagon record to 6-1.