Ranked strawweights will kick off UFC’s 2025 schedule.
A rematch between Amanda Ribas and Mackenzie Dern, which was initially expected to go down at UFC’s December 14th show, has reportedly been booted ahead to the promotion’s January 11th card at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, as first reported by Alex Behunin of MMA Mania.
The delay, while sidelining the 115-pound fighters for a little under a month, has elevated them to a five-round main event, a bigger spotlight than what they were expected to receive as part of the show next week in Tampa, Florida.
The matchup gives both Brazilian vets a chance to rebuild themselves after pivotal losses.
Ribas suffered a five-round unanimous decision defeat up at flyweight against Rose Namajunas this year. The fight shut down her chances of putting together a two-fight winning streak for the first time since 2020, as she was riding the momentum of a flashy 2023 stoppage win against Luana Pinheiro.
The next booking is just the second strawweight appearance for Ribas since 2022, potentially indicating that she has decided to move back down to the 115-pound limit.
After getting stopped in late 2023 by former champ Jessica Andrade and then losing a fight to recent strawweight title challenger Amanda Lemos early this year, Dern has since been trying to regain momentum.
The 31-year-old started that process in August when she picked up ta hree-round decision victory against Loopy Godinez. In now what is expected to be her 15th UFC appearance – and fourth-ever main event booking – Dern can score another big win as part of her latest campaign in the division.
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