Tomorrow night in the headliner of UFC Vegas 73, we are going to see a strawweight matchup featuring two contenders who are looking to climb up the rankings. Ranked contenders will battle it out as Mackenzie Dern (12-3) takes on Angela Hill (15-12).
Originally, these two were supposed to fight in a three-round fight last week. However, after the original main event for tomorrow fell through, these ladies got the spot. Angela Hill will be looking to continue her current winning streak tomorrow night. Entering UFC Vegas 73, she’s won two straight and will look for her third win tomorrow.
Mackenzie Dern had a ton of hype behind her early in her UFC career. The BJJ world champion started her career 7-0 including two wins inside the octagon. After a decision loss to Amanda Ribas, she won four in a row including a win over former Invicta champ Virna Jandiroba.
However, she’s just 1-2 in her last three fights with the one win coming by split decision. She needs a big win tomorrow night and she’ll be looking make a statement.
UFC Vegas 73 Prediction
A lot of this fight is going to come down to whether or not Mackenzie Dern can get things to the ground. Angela Hill has the cleaner striking technique and she fights with a good amount of volume. When they were fighting three rounds, I liked Hill because of that.
However, five rounds is a long time to keep the fight standing. I believe that at some point, Dern will be able to get the UFC Vegas 73 headliner to the ground. Once it’s there, the two are in her world. Angela Hill can hold her own on the ground, however, Dern is on a different level.
I believe we are heading for a close decision over five rounds. In rounds, I think Dern will clearly take things with grappling control. However, I see Hill winning early rounds with volume. Ultimately, it’ll come down to a swing round that I lean towards Dern. However, I wouldn’t put money on this matchup at UFC Vegas 73.
Prediction: Mackenzie Dern by Split Decision