Top-ranked strawweight contender Denise Gomes firmly believes she has done more than enough inside the Octagon to warrant a championship opportunity against reigning titleholder Mackenzie Dern. The surging 26-year-old fighter is pointing directly to her devastating knockout victory over perennial contender Yan Xiaonan back in August as the defining moment that sets her apart from the rest of the 115-pound division.
"I’m ready. I’ve already proven it, I’ve already shown it. There’s a lot more where that came from," Gomes told MMA Fighting, outlining her case for a championship bout. "Start with what I did in my last fight. None of the girls at the top have done what I did. That says a lot about me already. What do the fans want to see? What do the people on the other side of the screen, who take time out of their day to sit in the stands and watch, want to see? What I’ve been delivering: violence and intelligence. That alone is a huge reason. I deserve it."
Gomes currently holds an impressive 7-2 record inside the UFC, featuring four knockout victories. She is currently riding a stellar five-fight winning streak, which includes a pair of impressive finishes that have caught the attention of both fans and analysts. While other top contenders have argued their case—such as Tatiana Suarez, who recently secured a decision victory over Virna Jandiroba to stake her own claim for the belt—Gomes remains adamant that she stands alone when it comes to delivering the kind of explosive, high-impact performances that captivate audiences.
Drawing a contrast between her fighting style and those of other elite athletes in the division, Gomes noted that high-ranking contenders have largely relied on tactical decisions rather than decisive finishes in their recent outings.
"The other girls haven’t been delivering that," Gomes said. "Mackenzie and Zhang haven’t been delivering that in their recent fights either. They always put on great fights, but not what I’ve been delivering. This division needs an upgrade. Whether Zhang comes back or not, to be completely honest, I deserve a title shot. I want to fight, and I want to fight Zhang because, to me, she’s one of the best. She still is. I want to fight the best. It would be an honor for me. I’m not taking anything away from Mackenzie. She’s there, she’s already fought for and defended the belt, but if I beat her, I want to fight Zhang. I want to fight all the other girls too."
For Gomes, injecting fresh energy and heavy hands into the top tier of the division is essential for keeping the strawweight rankings vibrant and engaging for the global fanbase. She emphasizes that while her peers are undeniably tough and skilled athletes, the sport ultimately thrives on excitement and decisive outcomes.
"We need to shake things up at the top of this division and bring more knockouts," she added. "That’s how we generate a lot more excitement in our rankings. I’ll never disrespect any of the girls, they’re all tough as hell, but I deserve this opportunity. They’re making things happen in their own way, but nobody wants to see nothing but grappling and jiu-jitsu. I bring a lot more than that."
The current landscape of the strawweight division features Mackenzie Dern at the center, having captured the vacant title with a decision victory over Virna Jandiroba in October of 2025. Dern subsequently defended her crown this past August against Gillian Robertson, securing another hard-fought victory via a five-round decision. While Dern is widely recognized as an elite jiu-jitsu ace who has secured submissions in five of her 12 victories under the UFC banner, Gomes is entirely confident in her own martial arts background. She believes her grappling foundation is more than strong enough to handle whatever the champion attempts to bring to the canvas, while simultaneously offering severe danger on the feet.
"I’ve been fighting these girls in my head for a long time," Gomes said. "I had to go out there and put my name at the top, and I’m aware of that, but now I want to move up and plant my flag there. I can always see ways to get a knockout, I can always see ways to finish a fight. Mackenzie is a perfect matchup for that because, like Jessica Andrade did, I can use the weapons I have and break her game."
Addressing potential perceptions regarding the ground game, Gomes dismissed the notion that grappling represents a glaring vulnerability in her overall skill set. Instead, she attributes her evolution to a more mature, well-rounded approach to mixed martial arts that seamlessly merges high-volume aggression with tactical intelligence.
"She’s good at jiu-jitsu. People might think jiu-jitsu is my weakness, but it’s not. I’m very good at jiu-jitsu. I just hadn’t perfected it for MMA yet. Even if she wants to take me to the ground, I have the weapons to deal with that. But I’ve learned how to fight smart lately, combine my aggression with intelligence, and for this fight, I’m going to shut down her game, neutralize everything she might want to do, and impose my own game."
Regardless of who ultimately stands across the cage from her when she makes her next walk to the Octagon, Gomes carries an added layer of drive following her statement-making win over Yan Xiaonan. Notably, she has expressed lingering frustration over not being awarded a $100,000 performance bonus check for that specific victory, feeling that the exceptional nature of her finish was undervalued by decision-makers.
"They want us to do what we do, deliver a hard fight and do incredible things, and when we do that, we’re not valued as much. That’s how I felt," Gomes said. "I even joke that I think the only thing I didn’t do that was moonwalk. Not taking anything away from any fighter, obviously, everyone earned their recognition, but I know I deserved it just as much as anyone else. But I look at it this way: someone’s going to have to pay for it, right? I have a bonus that’s been building up. I’m going to fight, I’m going to score an incredible knockout in my next fight, and I’m going to say, ‘I have another bonus that’s been building up. If I had to do it twice to deserve it, I came here and did it.’ I take this as motivation, not as playing the victim."
