Mackenzie Dern wants to be UFC champion ... showing women can give birth AND kick ass in the Octagon -- proving you can be both an athlete and mom.
"I'm really just hoping that they have more mom champs. If I'm the first, you know that gave birth, I think it would be a big inspiration for a lot of people," Dern tells TMZ Sports.
We talked to 28-year-old Dern -- the 4th ranked strawweight -- days before her fight against 5th ranked Marina Rodriguez at UFC Fight Night on Saturday.