Never before has
Jessica
Andrade stood on such precarious footing.
The former
Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight titleholder
will attempt to put an end to a career-worst three-right losing
streak when she meets
Mackenzie
Dern in a three-round
UFC 295 showcase on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New
York. Andrade’s once-comfortable margin for error has all but
disappeared.
“It’s hard to know I’m coming off three losses,” she told
Sherdog.com. “It’s a new experience. I’ve never been in this
situation before. Of course, considering what a high level we’re
at, any small mistake can result in a defeat. That’s especially
true considering the girls I’ve fought. I learned a lot from those
losses.”
The Andrade tailspin started when she submitted to an
Erin
Blanchfield rear-naked choke at UFC Fight Night 219, picked up
more stream with a knockout defeat to
Xiaonan Yan
at UFC 288 and continued when she tapped to guillotine choke from
Tatiana
Suarez at UFC on ESPN 50. All the adversity has served as
something of a wakeup call for the 32-year-old Brazilian.
“I’ve been improving my striking and ground work to avoid the
possibility of being knocked out or submitted,” Andrade said.
“We’ve been working on strengthening my mind and body.”
As part of her recalibration, Andrade has put down some temporary
roots in America. Access to more high-level training partners, a
nutritionist, a physical therapist and the UFC Performance
Institute in Las Vegas were some of the driving forces behind the
move.
“My training sessions and partners have been very different, and to
be in the United States is great,” Andrade said. “Everything is
easier and better. I feel better and more relaxed. I’ll probably
stay here for a few more years working with the UFC so I can
continue to improve. I know it will happen.”
Amid all the change and self-reflection, Andrade faces yet another
treacherous assignment in the 115-pound weight class. Dern, a 2015
Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Fighting World Championship gold
medalist, has won six of her past eight bouts. She last competed at
UFC Fight Night 223, where she outpointed former
Invicta Fighting Championships titleholder
Angela Hill
to a unanimous decision in their five-round main event on May 20.
In 16 professional appearances, Dern has never been stopped.
“Her jiu-jitsu is excellent, and I see that her striking is also
getting better,” Andrade said. “I feel it’s a great fight for me,
whether she chooses to strike or if I have to rely on my takedown
defense. I have to stay smart, so we don’t hit the mat. I know my
jiu-jitsu is very good, as is my ground-and-pound, but I prefer not
to risk myself in that area. She’s excellent there. The plan is to
keep striking and defending takedowns, but if it goes to the mat,
we have ways to defend and bring the fight back to the feet.
“I hope it won’t go to the judges,” she added. “I want to get a
knockout in the second or third round. If it goes to the judges, I
want there to be no doubt. I don’t want to allow her to exploit any
weaknesses. I have to win, no matter what.”
While recent history has not been kind to Andrade and despite the
fact that she has a considerable amount of tread on her tires, the
Parana Vale Tudo product believes she still has all the necessary
tools to get back to the top of the division at some point. That
road begins with Dern.
“My plan is to get back to my winning ways, starting with this
bout,” Andrade said. “This will be my fifth fight this year and my
26th in the UFC. God willing, I’ll win this time. Hopefully,
sometime next year I can fight for the belt. For that to happen, I
have to keep on winning.”