While Chinese strawweight Yan Xiaonan is generally lauded for her striking abilities, she showed vastly improved grappling abilities, as well, en route to scoring a hard-fought decision win over Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Mackenzie Dern.
The contest served as the main event of Saturday's UFC Fight Night 211, which streamed live on ESPN+ from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.
As expected, Yan was the aggressor to start, walking forward with strikes and looking to score damage on the feet. Dern initially looked to return fire but quickly seized each opportunity to clinch and turn the bout into a grappling contest.