Dern Submits Ribas and Builds Strawweight Title Run
Mackenzie Dern avenged her 2019 loss to Amanda Ribas by submitting her with an armbar at 4:56 of the third round in the Jan. 11, 2025 main event of Fight Night: Dern vs. Ribas 2 at the Las Vegas APEX. The official event report confirmed the result.
A Different Ending to the Rivalry
The win reversed their first meeting, when Ribas earned a unanimous decision over Dern in Tampa on Oct. 12, 2019. The promotion’s fight record for Ribas lists that decision and the 2025 armbar loss. The rematch ended with Dern securing the submission in the closing seconds of Round 3.
What the Result Settled
Dern’s victory evened the series at one win apiece: Ribas won their first bout by decision, and Dern took the rematch by submission. The official event page lists the card and its results.
Grappling decided the rematch
The second fight developed differently from their first encounter. Dern secured an early takedown and spent much of the opening round on top, while Ribas limited her offense by controlling her from underneath. The exchanges remained competitive rather than becoming a straightforward submission attack from the opening bell.
The decisive sequence began with Dern threatening an armbar from the bottom in the third round. That attack helped her reverse position and reach mount. With the round nearly over, she returned to the armbar, separated Ribas’ defensive grip and extended the submission to force the tap. MMA Fighting’s ringside account details the transition from defense to the finishing position.
The result gave Dern consecutive victories as she began 2025. Her post-fight comments focused on building another winning streak and facing someone higher in the rankings. The performance therefore mattered beyond settling an old defeat: it showed how her submission game could change a closely contested main event even when she initially found herself underneath an opponent.
Sources
Tags: MMA
