Mackenzie Dern Has Missed Weight and Her Opponent, Amanda Bobby Cooper is Not Impressed at All…
UFC flyweight Mackenzie Dern has been heavily promoted in the run-up to UFC 224. She’s seen as the next Ronda Rousey because she’s got superb ju-jitsu and is very attractive. When it comes down to it, it’s that simple.
With all the promotion you’d be forgiven for thinking she was the headline fight. Well, she’s not. She is on the main card, however, and will fight Amanda Bobby Cooper in a not-so-flyweight clash, after Dern did the unthinkable and weighed in at 123 pounds instead of 115. Not good.
This is a major blow for the woman with the weirdest accent in the UFC. Honestly, what is that? She sounds Portuguese, but she’s fully American. Bizarre. Anyway, Amanda Cooper, who did make weight and has been adamant all week that she’s going to beat Dern, is not happy with her opponent. Not happy at all.
Big Blow
It’s a big blow for Dern and also for the UFC. She loses 30% of her purse for missing weight and will lose some of her credibility if she actually does win the fight. That, in turn, affects the UFC and will make them think twice about promoting her so much in the future. It’s just not professional.
She didn’t just miss weight either. Dern was a whopping seven pounds over the limit. That’s ridiculous really for a professional fighter of her caliber. However, the fight will go ahead, in what will be Dern’s second with the promotion after beating Ashley Yoder.
Reaction
Amanda Bobby Cooper, Dern’s opponent, has issued a statement after Dern missed weight. She agreed to fight at a catchweight and will get the 30% cut of Dern’s wages. Cooper said:
“Not shocked @mackenziedern missed weight but 7.4lbs over is a disgrace to all professionals. She’s not getting out of this fight that easy. Fight is still on. ABCNation get ready. #ufc224 strawweight vs flyweight tomorrow night in Brazil.”
Respect to Cooper for agreeing to fight. I guess if you fly all the way down to Rio de Janeiro, you’re going to be up for it. That’s a very expensive fight to train for, with your camp and having to fly your corner over as well. No wonder she said yes.
Elsewhere
UFC 224 takes place in the Jeunesse Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In the main event, Amanda Nunes defends her bantamweight title against Raquel Pennington. This fight is also noteworthy because it’s the first time two openly gay fighters will face off in the octagon. Good luck to them!
In the co-main event, Jacare Souza takes on Kelvin Gastelum in a middleweight title eliminator. Gastelum’s last appearance was that decapitation of Michael Bisping so he’ll be looking to continue his hot streak.
Apart from Dern, all fighters managed to make weight. This is the third time in her career that she’s failed to make strawweight. The UFC might need to sit down and have a chat with her because it’s frankly unacceptable.
