David Larsen 
@adminMarina Rodriguez faced Mackenzie Dern on October 9, 2021, on UFC Fight Night 194. She won the fight via unanimous decision. The women’s strawweight bout was the UFC Fight Night 194 main event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. It streamed on ESPN+. Rodriguez put on a striking clinic against Dern and landed kicks and punches almost at will. She was in control for the majority of the fight but did get tested in two rounds. Though she even got in trouble a couple of times. She managed to get back out of it. Marina struggled for a while as she was getting strangled by Dern. She survived those exchanges and went on to win the rest of the fight.
After the fight, Marina Rodriguez talked about her future in the division.
“Sincerely – Joanna doesn’t want to fight me, so I don’t want to fight her because for me she shouldn’t be in the rankings,” Rodriguez told at the UFC Fight Night 194 post-fight news conference. “She doesn’t fight anymore and needs to make space for the girls that are battling and fighting three times a year to earn a spot.
“It can be the Chinese fighter (Yan Xiaonan), whoever. I just prefer that it’s someone who’s in font of me, and then fight for the belt quick.”
“I’ll never deny a chance to fight for the title, but for me, Carla should be next and not Weili,” Rodriguez said. “But since the rematch is booked already with Rose. That’s happening, then if UFC gives me that opportunity, without a doubt I’m taking it. Sorry, Carla. I would prefer for (Esparza) to get the title shot, win the belt and then we can do the rematch, but it can’t take long. I can’t be waiting.”
Mackenzie Dern Reacts To Her Loss Against Marina Rodriguez
“Thank you everyone for all the support!,” Dern wrote on Instagram. “Yesterday wasn’t the result I was training for, but this fight is the biggest learning experience for me! Now I have a lot to look back on and fix to become a better fighter! For sure a submission would have been great but to have these rounds for me to work on is such a blessing! Congrats Marina for the win! I hope you guys enjoyed the fight and thanks @danawhite for the FOTN. Thank you to my family, my team, my friends and everyone who continues to support me! Letssss gooo!”
UFC Fight Night 194
Marina Rodriguez def. Mackenzie Dern via unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46)
Randy Brown def. Jared Gooden via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Matheus Nicolau def. Tim Elliott via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Mariya Agapova def. Sabina Mazo via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 0:53
Chris Gutierrez def. Felipe Colares via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 30-27)
Alexandr Romanov def. Jared Vanderaa via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:43
Damon Jackson def. Charles Rosa via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27, 30-27)
Loopy Godinez def. Silvana Gomez Juarez via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 4:14
Steve Garcia def. Charlie Ontiveros via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 1:51
