Rose Namajunas has a target on her back as Mackenzie Dern makes statement with Angela Hill win

Mackenzie Dern vs. Angela Hill turned out to be a thoroughly interesting affair, with both fighters showing their grit and toughness for 25 long minutes. In the end, Dern took home the victory via unanimous decision.

UFC Fight Night 223 took place on May 20 at the UFC Apex Facility in Paradise, Nevada, and was headlined by a five-round strawweight clash between Mackenzie Dern and UFC veteran Angela Hill.

Coming into the fight, Hill was riding a two-fight win streak in the UFC. Prior to that, 'Overkill' had lost three fights in a row. Dern, on the other hand, lost her last matchup against Yan Xiaonan in October 2022.

Over the course of the fight, the Brazilian put Hill in several difficult positions, attempting several submission moves. But 'Overkill' kept her composure and managed to dodge the submission attempts and took the fight to the distance.

It was Dern who got the better of her opponent for the majority of the fight and ended up on the winning side after the five-round affair. The three ringside judges scored the fight 49-43, 49-44, and 49-44 in favor of the 30-year-old.

With the victory, the Brazilian bounced back from her loss to Xiaonan and is now again on track to climb the strawweight rankings.

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Mackenzie Dern vs. Angela Hill: The Brazilian issues a challenge to former champion Rose Namajunas

After dominating Angela Hill for 25 minutes at UFC Vegas 73, Mackenzie Dern announced who she wanted to face next inside the octagon.

In her post-fight octagon interview with Michael Bisping, the Brazilian expressed interest in going toe-to-toe with former strawweight queen Rose Namajunas. In addition, Dern also mentioned the possibility of a rematch with Xiaonan.

"Man, I don't know what's Rose upto, you know? But if she's interested in fighting, I'd like to fight Rose... Maybe revenge with Yan. So, I mean, we've all kind of fought almost everyone but I never fought an ex-champion. I feel I can have that opportunity now. So yeah, Rose, Yan, someone in thee top 10, top five."

Namajunas has been out of action for over a year and her last performance against Carla Esparza left many MMA fans underwhelmed. The timeline for 'Thug's comeback is unclear at the moment but a matchup between her and Dern could make things exciting in the strawweight division.