UFC’s early calendar for 2025 is quickly taking shape.
The promotion on Friday announced a rematch between strawweight contenders Mackenzie Dern and Amanda Ribas for the main event of its Jan. 11 Fight Night event at Las Vegas’ UFC APEX.
The matchup serves as the first headliner of UFC’s 2025 schedule.
Dern (14-5) and Ribas (13-5) previously met in an October 2019 bout that saw Ribas upset Dern via unanimous decision, handing Dern the first loss of her professional MMA career.
Dern, 31, is one of the most decorated female jiu-jitsu practitioners of all time. Daughter of the legendary Wellington “Megaton” Dias, Dern made her transition to MMA in 2016 and won six of her first seven UFC appearances to creep toward title contention. However, she’s struggled to find consistent results since, going just 3-4 over her past seven bouts.
After losing back-to-back bouts for the first time in her career, Dern righted her ship in her most recent outing this past August with a decision win over Loopy Godinez.
Ribas, 31, has also experienced an up-and-down run since her first meeting with Dern, alternating wins and losses over her past eight bouts while jumping between the strawweight and flyweight divisions.
Ribas suffered a unanimous decision loss in a flyweight bout against former two-time UFC champion Rose Namajunas in her most recent Octagon appearance in March.
