“People see me in the gym crying” - Recently divorced Mackenzie Dern talks healing from her trauma ahead of UFC 295

Mackenzie Dern opened up on her personal life as she detailed how she coped with dealing with trauma from her recent divorce.

During her pre-fight media availability ahead of her bout against Jessica Andrade at UFC 295, the No.7 ranked strawweight noted that she has made plenty of changes in her personal life, including finding another gym to train at. She mentioned that it was difficult not to show any vulnerability while training at Fight Ready, which resulted in some frustrating moments.

She said:

"I'm trying to make everything private at home because you're just very vulnerable when everyone's seeing your training. I'm like, a world champion in Jiu Jitsu but people see me in the gym crying. I'm frustrated because I feel I should be better at something. I feel like I should be able to get it and I don't get it.'"

Mackenzie Dern also brought up that there have been other adjustments to her routine, like splitting time with her daughter. She mentioned that maintaining a routine is crucial for her to achieve her goal of being a UFC champion, saying:

"I think that's why it's hard to be a mom and try to be a world champion, to be the champion in the UFC because you need to be consistent in your training. When you don't feel you're consistent in your day-to-day life, one day is this, one day is that, you're like, 'I just need to train.'"

It will be interesting to see whether Mackenzie Dern can extend her winning streak against a former champion in Jessica Andrade and get back into the strawweight title picture.

---

When did Mackenzie Dern last compete?

Mackenzie Dern last competed this past May when she headlined UFC Vegas 73 against Angela Hill.

It was an excellent performance by the Jiu-Jitsu practitioner as she showcased some of her striking and earned a dominant unanimous decision win, with the judges scoring the bout 49-43, 49-44, and 49-44 in her favor. In addition to her dominant win, she also earned a post-fight bonus for Fight of the Night.