UFC Fight Night is set to return on Saturday, October 1st 2022 from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, but what are we expecting to happen in the main event?
Mackenzie Dern is set to face Yan Xiaonan in the final fight of the night, with both women hoping to continue their ascent in the Women’s Strawweight division.
A win here for either woman (with Dern being ranked #5 and Yan #6 in the division), could see them move on to an even bigger contest against the likes of Rose Namajunas, Weili Zhang or division Champion Carla Esparza, so this is a hugely important bout for both!
Here is our prediction for the main event of the next UFC Fight Night between Mackenzie Dern and Yan Xiaonan on Saturday, October 1st 2022.
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Dern vs Yan Stats
Image from the official UFC Instagram account
Dern is a veteran inside the octagon, with a 7-2 record since making her way to the company and a 12-2 record in MMA overall.
Most of Dern’s victories have come via submission, and she has an extensive background in submission grappling and Brazilian Ju-Jitsu, having earned gold medals in BJJ competitions around the world representing Brazil and the United States.
Dern has never won via knockout, or even technical knockout, which just so happens to be the speciality of her opponent Yan.
Xiaonan has a 15-3-0 record in MMA, with 47% of her victories coming via TKO/KO and the other 53% being via decision.
Read More: UFC Fight Night Live Stream: Dern vs Yan
Dern vs Yan Prediction
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - APRIL 09: Mackenzie Dern kick Tecia Torres in their strawweight fight during the UFC 273 event at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena on April 09, 2022 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
What we have here is a classic case of striker vs grappler/submission specialist. It’s all going to be about Dern trying to take Yan to the ground and the Chinese fighter having to do her best to stop that from happening.
The official UFC website currently has Dern as the -225 favourite compared to the +190 underdog status of Yan, and we’re inclined to agree with how the oddsmakers see this going.
Yan is not a complete outranked underdog and she has more than proven her abilities inside the octagon, but we’re expecting Dern to take the fight to the ground and to completely dominate before taking the win via submission.
Prediction: Dern via submission
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