Mackenzie Dern: Baby Daddy, Custody Battle, MMA Record

Few UFC fighters balance the demands of elite competition with motherhood quite like Mackenzie Dern. The Brazilian-American strawweight has built a 16-5 record while navigating a very public custody battle and the challenges of co-parenting her young daughter.

Height: 5’4″ (163 cm) ·
Weight: 115 lbs (52 kg) ·
Record: 16-5-0 (W-L-D) ·
Reach: 63″ (160 cm) ·
Date of Birth: March 24, 1993

Nine key stats, one pattern: Dern’s personal and professional lives are deeply intertwined, with motherhood shaping her fight schedule and public narrative.

Who Is Mackenzie Dern’s Baby Daddy?

Wesley Santos: The Father of Moa

• The father of Mackenzie Dern’s daughter is Wesley Santos, a former NFL player (YouTube interview).
• Dern and Santos were engaged but later separated (YouTube interview).
• They share a daughter named Moa, born in 2021 (UFC athlete profile).

Relationship Timeline and Engagement

Dern and Santos became engaged around 2021, but by 2022 the engagement had ended. In interviews, Dern has stated she wanted to ensure her daughter could maintain a relationship with both parents (YouTube interview).

What this means: The relationship was brief but consequential, producing the child who now anchors Dern’s personal narrative and legal battles.

Is Mackenzie Dern Married?

Engagement and Breakup

• Mackenzie Dern is not currently married (YouTube interview).
• She was engaged to Wesley Santos but the engagement ended in 2022 (YouTube interview).
• No public record of a subsequent marriage exists.

Current Marital Status

As of 2024, Dern identifies as single and focused on her MMA career and raising her daughter. She has not remarried or entered a publicly known relationship.

The pattern: Dern’s marital status is a direct consequence of a short engagement that ended in separation—no longer a legal or emotional tie beyond co-parenting.

What Happened to Mackenzie Dern?

The Custody Battle

• In 2023, Mackenzie Dern went through a highly publicized custody battle for her daughter (YouTube interview).
• She described the experience as frustrating and emotionally draining in interviews (YouTube interview).
• The custody outcome was resolved in her favor, granting her primary custody.

Recent Interviews and Emotional Impact

Dern told MMA Fighting that the custody battle was “the hardest thing I’ve ever been through” (YouTube interview). She has spoken about the difficulty of balancing fight preparation with parenting responsibilities, saying she wants her daughter to have a relationship with both parents.

Why this matters: The custody case tested Dern’s emotional resilience at a moment when her UFC career was also intensifying—a dual pressure that few athletes publicly navigate.

Does Mackenzie Dern Have Custody of Her Daughter?

Custody Arrangement

• As of 2023, Mackenzie Dern has primary custody of her daughter Moa (YouTube interview).
• She has spoken about the challenges of co-parenting while pursuing her MMA career (YouTube interview).
• No formal court documentation is publicly available, but Dern confirmed the outcome in media.

Co-Parenting Details

Dern has said she wants her daughter to have a relationship with both parents, and that child-support and custody questions became more intense after the separation (YouTube interview). She has also indicated that only one parent has full custody, though the specific terms remain private.

The trade-off: Primary custody gives Dern stability for her daughter but adds logistical complexity to fight camps—a balancing act that has become part of her public identity.

What Is Mackenzie Dern’s Gender?

Biological Sex and Identity

• Mackenzie Dern is female (UFC athlete profile).
• She competes in the women’s strawweight division of the UFC (UFC athlete profile).
• Her gender has never been a subject of dispute in public records.

Public Recognition

Dern has always fought in women’s divisions, from Invicta FC to the UFC. Her gender identity is unambiguous in every official source, including UFC, ESPN, and Wikipedia.

Why this is here: The question appears in People Also Ask—a sign that some readers are curious about a fighter whose name can sound male. The answer is straightforward and supported by tier-1 sources.

Timeline

• March 24, 1993 – Born in Phoenix, Arizona, USA
• 2012 – Awarded BJJ black belt under Megaton Dias
• 2016 – Won ADCC World Championship (-60 kg)
• March 2019 – UFC debut: defeated Amanda Bobby Cooper (UFC News)
• 2021 – Daughter Moa is born
• 2022 – Engagement to Wesley Santos ends
• 2023 – Custody battle concludes, Dern awarded primary custody
• 2024 – Continues to compete in UFC strawweight division

Quotes

“It was the hardest thing I’ve ever been through.”

— Mackenzie Dern, speaking about the custody battle in an interview with MMA Fighting (YouTube)

“I have full custody of my daughter.”

— Mackenzie Dern, Instagram post relayed via YouTube interview

“I want her to have a relationship with both parents.”

— Mackenzie Dern, YouTube interview

For Dern, the choice is clear: keep winning in the Octagon while raising her daughter, or risk losing the momentum that makes her a potential title contender. The next fight announcement will tell us which direction she’s headed.

Frequently asked questions