The UFC is heading back to Abu Dhabi for a stacked fight night event for the fans. We have a possible No. 1 contender fight in the bantamweight division when Cory Sandhagen and Umar Nurmagomedov headline this fight night event.

On the main card is a fight between two surging contenders in the strawweight division as Mackenzie Dern and Loopy Godinez go to battle. Both fighters will be looking to right the ship and get back to their winning ways when they step foot inside the Octagon in Abu Dhabi.

This should be an exciting scrap between these two strawweight competitors so let's take a look at this matchup and our Dern-Godinez prediction and pick.

ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 17: Mackenzie Dern prepares to face Amanda Lemos of Brazil in a strawweight fight during the UFC 298 event at Honda Center on February 17, 2024 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

UFC Abu Dhabi: Mackenzie Dern Predictions August 3rd

Mackenzie Dern (13-5) has hit a bit of a rough patch in her recent fights as she comes into this fight losing back-to-back fights for the first time in her professional MMA career.

She took a loss to former title challenger Amanda Lemos and former strawweight champion Jessica Andrade whom are two of the best fighters in the division. However, before those two losses Dern won six out of her last eight fights showing that she can compete with the best in the division.

Dern came into her UFC career with a ton of hype surrounding her as she is the most accomplished Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt in women's MMA.

• In Dern's 13 victories as a professional MMA fighter, she has racked up 7 submissions with a variety of different submissions.

While her grappling is her strong suit, she has made a ton of strides over the years in her striking making her a more complete fighter. In her previous two losses, she wasn't training with her well-renowned coach Jason Parillo but now he's back as her full-time coach and in her corner which should be a major boost.

In this matchup, Dern will need to get this fight to the mat as she always does and dominate from there. While she can compete on the feet in this fight with Godinez more than in her last two fights against Lemos and Andrade it's still best for her to use her best attribute her grappling to get the job done here.

As long as she's able to land some power punches close the distance and get inside the clinch she should be able to dominate from there and either notch her eighth submission victory or get the nod on the judge's scorecards.

UFC Abu Dhabi: Loopy Godinez Predictions August 3rd

Loopy Godinez (12-4) was looking like a bonafide strawweight contender with four straight victories in 2023 only for her winning streak to be snapped against top contender in the division Virna Jandiroba.

• Godinez has been one of the most active fighters in strawweight history as no other fighter in the division has won four fights in one calendar year.
• She also has fought 11 times in just a three-year span.

She comes from a wrestling family where she competed in wrestling becoming a national champion before making the switch to MMA. Her sister Ana Godinez who is normally in her corner will not be there this time around because she will be competing in the Olympics for wrestling just 6 days after her fight.

Godinez does a great job at utilizing her wrestling to her advantage in her fights as well.

• She averages a robust 3.04 takedowns per 15 minutes with a fantastic 84% takedown defense.

This part of her game is going to be crucial when going against one of the best grapplers in the strawweight division. Her ability to keep this fight on her feet will be key in this matchup.

When this fight is on the feet, Godinez is much faster, with better movement, and by far the more precise striker. She must keep this fight on her feet so she can pick Dern apart at range to cruise to a decision victory and get back into the win column in Abu Dhabi.

UFC ABU DHABI: MACKENZIE DERN vs LOOPY GODINEZ FANDUEL ODDS FOR AUGUST 3

MONEY LINE

• MACKENZIE DERN: -132
• LOOPY GODINEZ: +104

PROPS

• MACKENZIE DERN BY POINTS: +260
• MACKENZIE DERN BY SUBMISSION: +290
• MACKENZIE DERN BY KNOCKOUT/TKO: +1200
• LOOPY GODINEZ BY POINTS: +140
• LOOPY GODINEZ BY KNOCKOUT/TKO: +1400
• LOOPY GODINEZ BY SUBMISSION: +2200

OVER/UNDER (ROUNDS TOTAL)

• OVER 2.5 ROUNDS (-260)
• UNDER 2.5 ROUNDS (+192)

BEST UFC ABU DHABI ODDS FOR MACKENZIE DERN vs LOOPY GODINEZ

• Loopy Godinez is the betting underdog in this matchup. BetMGM Sportsbook comes in with the best odds at (+110)
• Mackenzie Dern is the slight favorite in this strawweight matchup. Bet365 Sportsbook has the best betting odds at (-125)
• FanDuel has the best odds when it comes to the over/under on the total rounds, which is set at 2.5 Rounds (-260) for the over, and (+192) for the under

FINAL DERN-GODINEZ PICK & PREDICTION

This is a great scrap between two contenders in the strawweight division as Mackenzie Dern and Loopy Godinez look to make a statement this weekend.

Ultimately, this should be a closely contested fight but it should be very reminiscent of Godinez's fight with Jandiroba where she can't open up with her striking because of the grappling prowess of Dern and from there Dern should be able to land her strikes, get in the clinch, and work her magic and rack up valuable control time and get the nod on the judge's scorecards.

FINAL DERN-GODINEZ PICK & PREDICTION: MACKENZIE DERN (-132)