Dern Reportedly Set to Defend Against Gomes in March

A surprising name has surfaced for Mackenzie Dern's next title defense. A report says the strawweight champion is lined up to defend her belt against Denise Gomes in March 2027.

Who Gomes is

Gomes is 13-3 overall and 7-1 in the UFC. Her current streak is five wins, and it includes Tecia Pennington and Elise Reed.

Earlier this year she knocked out Yan Xiaonan in the first round at UFC Shanghai.

She reached the UFC through Dana White's Contender Series in August 2022, where she beat Rayanne dos Santos by unanimous decision.

Talks, not an announcement

MMA journalist Laerte Viana was first to report it. A title fight between Dern and Gomes is in talks, he says, for a March 2027 event at a location still to be announced.

That makes it a report of talks, not a booking. The UFC has not announced its plans for March, or its major lineups for February.

The first major card of 2027 is UFC 336, with Joshua Van facing Manel Kape in a flyweight main event.

The champion's road so far

Dern took the vacant 115-pound belt by beating Virna Jandiroba at UFC 321. In August she defended it against Gillian Robertson at UFC 330.

Where Weili fits

Zhang Weili tried to hold two titles at once and failed. The talk is that she returns to strawweight in 2027 to chase her old belt, which could set up a Dern fight.

A shot for Gomes would push the Weili fight further back.

Jandiroba's weekend

Jandiroba, the woman Dern beat for the belt, lost last weekend at UFC Vegas 123. Tatiana Suarez, a former title challenger, took a unanimous decision over her.

Source: BJPenn.com