Miesha Tate: ‘Cupcake’ Recognizes ‘UFC 196: McGregor Vs. Diaz’ May Be Last Chance To Win UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship
When it comes to being a champion, Miesha Tate knows how it feels. Throughout her storied career which lasts almost a decade, “Cupcake” has only been champion twice. The first was in Freestyle Cage Fighting and the second was in Strikeforce. However, Tate has never been a champion in UFC despite almost winning the coveted title from Ronda Rousey at UFC 168: Weidman vs. Silva 2 simply on her own endurance. Unfortunately, Rousey was able to lock in her patented armbar, which spelled the end for Miesha Tate that night.
Since that loss, Miesha Tate would have to work her way back up to earn another shot at the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship. Tate earned it with four straight victories against Liz Carmouche, Rin Nakai, Sara McMann, and Jessica Eye. Now just days from her opportunity, Miesha Tate says she is not taking this opportunity for granted because she knows they may her last chance to win the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship.
“I’m one in two women in the whole world that’s fighting Saturday night for the biggest promotion in MMA, and how could you take that for granted? I understand this is a big opportunity for me.”
As mentioned earlier, Miesha Tate had to defeat four other MMA fighters to even be considered the number one contendership. To make things worse for her, Tate did not even get the match as she was literally skipped over for Ronda Rousey versus Holly Holm. This caused Tate to express anger towards Dana White and the UFC because she was “guaranteed” the next fight against Rousey when she was still champion. True there are rumors that White did not want a third fight between Tate and Rousey because he believed it wouldn’t bring in the pay-per-view numbers and high attendance record, but that is mere speculation.
Nevertheless, Miesha Tate now has her opportunity against someone who may be the most dangerous opponent she’s ever faced. Take note that Miesha Tate lost twice against Ronda Rousey, a woman who Holly Holm dominated to become the current UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion. Tate knows this will be a fight which she needs to perform at her best because she knows there are no guarantees of ever getting another chance.
“There’s no guarantees that I’ll ever get another title shot at this point, so it is a do-or-die. It’s the only thing that matters to me. Nothing comes after that, and it’s just tunneling in. I feel super energetic and super focused.”
If Miesha Tate wants to have a chance to win, she needs to find a way to get Holly Holm down on the floor. Such a task is easier said than done given that Holm has a 100 percent success rate in takedown defense. The only other option Tate is her durability, endurance, and power. Alas, those are attributes Holm has too.
For the full interview Miesha Tate gave during the UFC 196: McGregor vs. Diaz Presser, it is attached below for viewing.
UFC 196: McGregor vs. Diaz will take place on Saturday, March 5, 2016 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena located in Las Vegas, Nevada. The main card, which will feature Holly Holm versus Miesha Tate in the co-main event and Conor McGregor versus Nate Diaz in the main event, starts at 10 p.m./7 p.m. ETPT.
[Photo by Steve Marcus/Getty Images]
