Two of the best grapplers in the UFC’s women’s strawweight division will meet in December.
Top prospect Mackenzie Dern and former Invicta FC champion Virna Jandiroba have verbally agreed to fight each other at UFC 256 on Dec. 12, sources confirmed to ESPN. No location has been made official yet for that card. Dern and Jandiroba have yet to sign bout agreements, sources said, and the UFC has not announced the fight.
MMAFighting.com first reported the verbal agreement.
Dern (9-1) has won two straight since the first loss of her career to Amanda Ribas last October. The Arizona native is coming off a first-round submission win over Randa Markos last month. Dern, 27, was once considered the top pound-for-pound women’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner in the world. Since crossing over to MMA in 2016, she has six submissions in nine career wins.
Jandiroba (16-1) has won two straight, both by submission. The Brazil native has 13 submissions in 16 career victories. Jandiroba, 32, is coming off a first-round submission over Felice Herrig in August. She held the Invicta FC title in 2018 before being signed by the UFC.
UFC 256 does not yet have an announced main event, but MMA pound-for-pound queen Amanda Nunes is expected to defend her women’s featherweight title against Megan Anderson on the card.