UFC Rankings Update: Only one fighter climbs up after Mackenzie Dern vs. Angela Hill card
The latest UFC rankings update features little movement, with only one change across all divisions after UFC Fight Night: Mackenzie Dern vs. Angela Hill.
Dern faced off against Hill in the main event of UFC Vegas 73 in a strawweight bout for her first fight of 2023. She put in a dominant performance against an in-form Hill, who had won her last two bouts.
Dern, who was previously ranked No.8, moved up a single position to No.7 in the women's strawweight division, the only change in the the latest rankings update. The move bumped down Marina Rodriguez from No.7 to No.8. The other main event fighter from UFC Vegas 73, Angela Hill, remained in her No.14 spot in the division.
Mackenzie Dern opened the fight splendidly and was brutal in the opening round with a barrage of strikes and heavy ground and pound. Dern also managed to lock in an armbar on her overwhelmed opponent but the clock ran out on her as Angela Hill desperately held on.
A slightly stronger performance from Hill followed in round two, but rounds three to five were all Dern's. At the end of five rounds, Dern was ruled the victor on the judges' scorecards via unanimous decision (49-43, 49-44, 49-44).
Dana White reacts to Mackenzie Dern calling out Rose Namajunas
Mackenzie Dern followed up her dominant victory over Angela Hill at UFC Vegas 73 by calling out former two-time strawweight champion Rose Namajunas.
UFC president Dana White spoke in the post-event press conference and praised her performance in the 'Fight of the Night' main event.
“I don’t know, but that’s a fun fight too. Mackenzie’s in a really good position after tonight’s performance. She’s never looked meaner than she looked tonight. She came out on a mission, man. She looked like she was in great shape. She fought hard for five rounds. Her stand up was on point. She hurt Angela Hill several times with her standup and was all over her on the ground. Other than pulling off a knockout or a sub, she couldn’t have had a better performance than tonight, so I think anything is possible for her.”
White also maintained that there is a possibility of the matchup materializing citing that Dern did all that she could.
Check out Dana White's full comments in the press conference [11:56]: