Mackenzie Dern desires to be first fighter to complete Tecia Torres at UFC 273: ‘That would possibly well well be a expansive statement’

Mackenzie Dern desires to be create historical past at UFC 273.

This Saturday, Dern will grab on Tecia Torres in a featured strawweight fight on the basic card of UFC 273. It’s a pivotal fight for Dern who’s coming off a loss to Marina Rodriguez closing October, and desires a get if she desires to cease within the title conversation. However Dern isn’t correct shopping for a get this weekend. The No. 5-ranked strawweight within the MMA Combating Global Rankings desires to create a statement on Saturday by changing into the first particular person to complete Torres.

“100 p.c. That’s positively what I care about. I’m love, I deserve to be the first one. I judge that is possible to be a expansive statement if I will procure it because of of the full ladies she’s fought,” Dern informed Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour. “She fought ex-champions, dilapidated champions, she’s been the pioneer of the strawweight division, she’s fought so many ladies and no one’s been in a spot to complete her. If I will procure that I judge that’s positively a expansive statement.”

Dern doesn’t must stay there even though. As one in all the most done grapplers to ever transition to MMA, the more than one-time BJJ world champion has her sights field on a super higher overall profession purpose: to wrest the title of “Most Submissions in UFC historical past” a ways from present gentle-weight champion Charles Oliveira.

“I deserve to defend as much as Charles Create Bronx on submission, most submissions within the UFC,” Dern said. “I do know he has just a few years on me, nonetheless that’s my purpose, to create my hang legacy within the UFC, and positively getting that first discontinuance of Tecia is on it.”

Oliveira, who has been competing within the UFC since 2010, within the within the period in-between holds the narrative for Most Submissions in UFC historical past with 15, four higher than his subsequent closest competitor. With greatest four submissions for the length of the UFC to this point, Dern has a long manner to drag to create up that ground. However even though she can’t add to that quantity in opposition to Torres this weekend, Dern is aloof moving regarding the different to grab all of Torres’ momentum, and procure help within the title hunt.

“I truly went through and watched all her fights, and I do know that most of her losses are to dilapidated champions, so she’s a tough fighter,” Dern said. “She’s rapid, she has trusty volume, she’s rapid, she has trusty footwork, nonetheless basically, I judge she correct didn’t respect the ladies she’s beating. I judge she correct overwhelmed them and didn’t care and correct saved overwhelming them and didn’t allow them to procure the rhythm within the fight…

“I positively thinking this self belief that she’s coming in with in her closing fights is getting an increasing form of. She’s correct love, I’m gonna near forward and correct be the Runt Twister that she is, and that’s the fighter that I deserve to fight. I deserve to fight the one who’s gonna lift that out in me and grab me to the next level. I’m so happy to be combating her with this self belief that she has because of I deserve to grab it a ways from her.”

UFC 273 takes house this Saturday on the VyStar Veterans Memorial Enviornment in Jacksonville, Fla.