Mackenzie Dern: Amanda Lemos is going to knock out Zhang Weili at UFC 292

UFC strawweight contender Mackenzie Dern sees a new champion soon being crowned in her division.

Dern believes that champion Zhang Weili will lose her belt when she squares off against challenger Amanda Lemos at UFC 292 on Aug. 19 in Boston. Not only does Dern (13-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) see Weili losing, but she also sees her getting stopped.

“I think Amanda Lemos is going to knock her out,” Dern told Michael Bisping in a recent interview. “Amanda Lemos is a hard fight. She’s probably one of the last persons on my list that I want to fight right now.”

Dern, who’s coming off a unanimous decision win over veteran Angela Hill, knows Weili is a tough adversary and currently the world’s best at 115 pounds. But she believes Lemos is bound to catch her in 25 minutes of fighting.

“From what I saw with Rose (Namajunas) catching her (Weili) on the chin with that kick and was just kind of like ‘boom,’ on the spot, precise, I can see Amanda Lemos like hanging on,” Dern explained. “She’s hard to knock out, she has a good base. I don’t see Weili like Jessica Andrade with big biceps and that style to submit her, even though I know Zhang has a ground game. I think in 25 minutes, she can land a shot that will knock her out.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 292.