If you have high hopes for Miesha Tate to return to the Octagon, you may want to dial it back a bit.
The former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women’s bantamweight title holder retired after her unanimous decision loss to Raquel Pennington at UFC 205 in New York City. It was the second time in her professional mixed martial arts (MMA) career where she suffered back-to-back losses.
Tate realized her dream of becoming UFC champion at UFC 196. She had an exciting title bout against Holly Holm. In the final round, “Cupcake” locked in a rear-naked choke to capture the gold.
Her next fight was the beginning of the end for her career as a competitor. Amanda Nunes starched Tate and mangled her nose in the process. “The Lioness” finished the bloody champion with a rear-naked choke to take the title.
When the UFC announced they would be adding a featherweight division, many felt Cris Cyborg finally got her wish. The only problem is, she was flagged by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) for a diuretic. This Saturday night (Feb. 11) Holm and Germaine de Randamie will fight for the inaugural 145-pound title, but the division’s future remains unclear.
With the division sorely lacking in size, many have turned their attention to Tate. With Cyborg out at the moment, Tate and Holm would easily be the biggest names in the division. “Cupcake” recently appeared on MMAJunkie Radio to dash those hopes:
“At this point, it’s not even on the radar, so I can’t say that will probably happen, because I don’t think that it will. I’m really happy in the retirement, honestly. I’ve just been really enjoying myself and figuring out a little bit more about who I am beyond Miesha the fighter. It’s been a very interesting process, so I’m really enjoying that. I don’t have any plans to come back, or even any desire to.”
