LFA 6 results: Mackenzie Dern uses striking to stay unbeaten; Ray Rodriguez wins close main event

When you’re arguably the best female Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner in the world, you might as well find news way to challenge yourself.

So that was sort of the case for Mackenzie Dern, who displayed 15 minutes of quality striking to notch a unanimous decision win over Katherine Roy, with two judges scoring the 120-pound catchweight fight 30-27 and the other 29-28.

LFA 6 took place at the Cowboys Dancehall in San Antonio, Texas, and aired live on AXS TV.

The result wasn’t exactly what Dern (3-0) had hoped for, but she sees the positive in being able to show how much she’s evolved.

“No, no. first I wanted the submission,” Dern said. “I tried tons of times to get it to the ground, but I couldn’t submit her. But, you know, everyone says, ‘One day she’s going to fight someone who can beat her jiu-jitsu.’ And also, the plan was to be able to survive if I (couldn’t submit her). I think I did better than survive. I won.”

And she looked good in the process, clearly out-striking the striker with an arsenal of punching combos and kicks. Dern did appear headed for a quick finish when she tried for an arm bar early in Round 1, though Roy (1-1) fended it off. Dern spent nearly 4 minutes of Round 2 mounting Roy and hammering her with ground and pound.

In Round 3, Dern stood toe to toe with Roy. The round was a little closer, though Dern made the most of her 15 minutes.

The only drawback was that Dern missed weight, which isn’t anything new for her. The woman being dubbed “the next Ronda Rousey” seems destined for the UFC, though she’ll have to get her weight issues under control.

“Everyone’s talking about my weight. I know it’s a big problem and an issue,” Dern said. “Everyone is saying I should go to 125, but the UFC doesn’t have 125. They have 115, and that’s the weight class I want to fight. … I’m trying my best, It’s no excuse for anything.”

Rodriguez defeats Junior in close main event

There was a moment, during the second round of his featherweight fight against Rivaldo Junior, when it looked like it would be all over for Ray Rodriguez.

Rivaldo had taken down Rodriguez, putting “The Judge” in a position he didn’t want to be. Even worse, Rivaldo locked in a tight arm triangle that put the fight in danger of being over.

“It was tight, man,” Rodriguez said. “But I’m a resilient fighter.”

Indeed, Rodriguez found a way out and kept the fight alive, eventually leading to a hard-fought split-decision win over Rodriguez. The judging was all over the place, with scores of 30-27, 27-30, 29-28.

For the most part, Rodriguez (12-4) dictated the pace of the first round, controlling the center of the octagon and throwing combo after combo. It was in that second round that Rodriguez found himself in trouble – not once, but twice with submission attempts. The third round saw a fresher-looking Rodriguez get the best of a visibly tired Junior (15-7-2) , which might’ve proved to be the deciding factor.

“Listen, I’ve been through a lot of shit in my life,” Rodriguez said. “I was in the army for six years. I’ve come back from a lot of ups and downs. One little MMA fight is not going to do anything. I’ve served my country, I’m proud of my country, and that’s taught me to be a warrior.”

If you’re keeping track, that’s seven consecutive wins for Rodriguez in the last two years after he once posted a 5-4 record. He’s got one request.

“This is my time, baby,” Rodriguez said. “LFA, I want that belt, let’s go!”

Anders mauls Kirk with vicious lefts to remain unbeaten

Eryk Anders really loves his left hand, and it showed in his 190-pound catchweight fight against Jon Kirk.

After getting an early takedown, Anders (7-0) proceeded to drop bombs repeatedly with his left hand and elbow to maul Kirk (19-14), forcing the referee to stop the fight 1:35 into the first round and giving Anders a TKO victory.

“It’s my favorite weapon,” said Anders, the former University of Alabama linebacker. “These middleweights just don’t know how much power is in it. This left hand could put anyone on this planet to sleep.”

Kirk (19-14) took the fight on late notice after Larry Crowe withdrew. Anders was glad he dominated and finished so quickly.

“I don’t get paid by the hour,” he said. “Had to get in, get out, take as little damage as possible.”

Mission accomplished.

Officer Odoms defeats Hoffman with brutal TKO finish

You might call it a documented case of police brutality.

Richard Odoms, a police officer fighting in his hometown, put it on Willian Hoffman early and often, eventually leading to an impressive TKO victory in the second round of their heavyweight bout.

“I’ve got a lot of work to do,” the 41-year-old Odoms said after. “I’m still doing work.”

“The Black Eagle” came out fast and briefly found himself in trouble when he was tripped and taken down by Hoffman (8-3). But Odoms (12-3) ended up on Hoffman’s back, though the two didn’t do much on the ground. Hoffman eventually got back up but missed a big judo throw, resulting in giving up his back a second time.

They come out banging in the second round, with Odoms landing a high knee. But it was a leg kick to the body that signaled the end, sending Hoffman to the ground. He bounced right back up, only to eat a hard kick to the solar plexus that buckled him. Odoms saw that and quickly pounced with some hard punches, forcing the referee to step in at the 1:25 mark.

Ivy brothers split – one wins, one loses

Quick and smooth. That was Anthony Ivy in his LFA debut as he choked out Arthur Ashton in the first round for the win in the welterweight bout.

Ivy (3-1) came out and wasted no time with a takedown, lifting Ashton (2-2) off the ground before they went to the canvas. Ivy transitioned nicely into an arm bar attempt that failed. As a result, Ashton managed to get in some punches as they separated, but that was all the trouble Ivy was in – if you could call it that.

Moments later, Ivy was back on top and in full mount, signaling the beginning of the end as Ashton quickly turned over to give up his back. It wasn’t long before Ivy sunk in a deep rear-naked choke, forcing the submission at the 2:04 mark of the first round.

The story was quite different for Dimitre Ivy, who tapped out in the first round of a feathweight fight against Gleidson Cutis.

Cutis (6-2), fighting in front of home crowd, got off to a slow start. Ivy (6-4) exploded in with a nice combo during the first minute, landing a hard overhand right. The two fighters remained in the clench against the cage, with Ivy displaying some impressive Muay Thai knees to the body.

But all it took was a simple trip from Cutis to take the fight to the ground. Cutis immediately positioned himself into a mount and transitioning to an impressive grapevine leg lock that popped Ivy’s knee, forcing the submission at the 2:30 mark of the first round.

LFA 6 results:

• Ray Rodriguez def. Rivaldo Junio via split decision (30-27, 27-30, 29-28)
• Eryk Anders def. Jon Kirk via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:35
• Mackenzie Dern def. Katherine Roy via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Richard Odoms def. Willian Hoffman via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 1:25
• Gleidson Cutis def. Dimitre Ivy via submission (grapevine leg lock) – Round 1, 2:30
• Anthony Ivy def. Arthur Ashton via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:04

For more on LFA 6, check out the MMA Events section of the site.