Mackenzie Dern had a meteoric rise through the ranks of her division. The bjj ace went quickly through Legacy Fighting Aliance, only to move to Invicta and ultimately the UFC.
Now Dern has decided she needs a new home to hone in on her game.
“In relation with the Lab, after my last fight, Coach [John] Crouch, he just invited me to leave the team,” Dern said. “I think really we don’t have a 100-percent understanding. I think he knows his decisions more than me. I think with just the consistency, he wanted me to be there more often than what I was, but everything happens for a reason.”
Dern said she is currently training in the Los Angeles area with Checkmat and Leo Vieira for jiu-jitsu and Blackhouse for striking. Leo Vieira notably cornered her in her last mma fight.
“It’s nothing 100 percent or anything like that, but for this camp I’ve been working with them and I’m feeling so good,” Dern said.
MMA Lab coach Crouch released a statement saying:
“She was struggling to make it back and forth to Arizona, and I thought it was better that she just set up her camp in California, where she really enjoys being,” Crouch said.
“I wish her the best. I know she’s going to do great in her jiu-jitsu career and in her MMA career, and we’ll be cheering for her.”
Dern feels good before her next match:
“I think, like I said, the mindset and being confident, if you’re happy, too, with where you are, it’s the best,” Dern said. “Here is a little bit similar lifestyle that I have in Brazil. I almost went back to Brazil to live there. I was even training with Jose Aldo down there and everything and seeing if I would be there. So, I have this lifestyle here in California, which gives me that good balance.”
Dern added it’s not just about the schedule:
“I’m not just training,” Dern said. “I’m not the person that the next day I’m back in the academy. I like to be able to be on the beach and relax and miss to be on the mats and want to be on the mats. I don’t like to feel the pressure to be on the mats. I’m on the mats since I’m 3 years old. For me, at 25, when I have the time to rest and everything, then the next time, it’s like man I want to train. I like to have that drive.”
Meanwhile Dern is scheduled to appear at an amazing camp – undefeated UFC fighter and multiple World and ADCC Champion Mackenzie Dern will be leading a BJJ/grappling camp in Barcelona, Spain 29,30 june, 01 july 2018.
To learn more about the camp click here.
