Miesha Tate ‘Shocked’ by UFC 195 Announcement, Had Already Begun Training for Rousey
Miesha Tate thought the next UFC title shot was already hers. |
Jeff Sherwood/Sherdog.com
By defeating Jessica Eye at UFC on Fox 16, it appeared that Miesha Tate had clinched a third date with reigning bantamweight queen Ronda Rousey.
It was Tate’s fourth consecutive victory since her third-round submission loss to “Rowdy” at UFC 168, and with Cristiane Justino’s ability to make weight still very much in question, “Cupcake” had once again distinguished herself in a division owned by the Olympic judoka. UFC President Dana White all but made Rousey-Tate III official at that evening’s post-fight press conference.
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That all changed early Friday morning, when Rousey appeared on “Good Morning America” to announce that she would be defending her belt against former boxing world champion Holly Holm at UFC 195 on Jan. 2. The news came as an unpleasant surprise to Tate, who said she had already begun preparations to face her rival.
“I am extremely disappointed how all the events unfolded this morning regarding news that I will not be fighting Ronda Rousey. I was told after my last win that I had earned the title shot,” Tate wrote on Instagram. “I've already begun training for Rousey and I was shocked to hear the announcement this morning. I regret this for not only myself, but my team, sponsors and the fans who like me believed my next fight was for the title.”
At the moment, Tate does not have an opponent for her next fight, although she has recently expressed an interest in facing “Cyborg” at a 140-pound catch-weight. In addition to Eye, Tate has bested Sara McMann, Rin Nakai and Liz Carmouche during her current winning streak.
Tate has lasted longer than any other Rousey opponent at UFC 168, finally tapping to an armbar 58 seconds into round three. She submitted to the same maneuver at the 4:27 mark of round one in their first meeting in Strikeforce in 2012.
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