Miesha Tate and Ronda Rousey
Miesha Tatesaysshes inspired, not jealous, when Ronda Rouseyflips the sport on its head with her spectacular performances.
Tate and the UFC womens bantamweight champion have a long history. Theyve fought twice before once in the UFC and once in Strikeforce with Rousey winning both titlefights with her trademark armbar.
Both fighters have moved forward fromtheir most recent collision, at UFC 168 in December 2013. Tate (16-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC) is currently riding a three-fight UFC winning streak, and Rousey (11-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) just made history with a 14-second title defenseagainst Cat Zingano at UFC 184 this pastSaturday.
Rouseys three fights since the latest Tate fight have lasted a combined 96 seconds. That level of dominance would force some to shy away from another encounter, but Tate saidshe draws motivation from Rouseys unmatched efforts.
Im not only impressed, Im inspired, Tate said on UFC 184s post-fight show on FOX Sports 1. Every time I watch her fight, I realize shes on such a different level, and I want to get on that level. Thats what I want. I want to get on that level. I want to figure out what it is whether I have to train 12 hours a day I want to figure out how to catch up. Shes a phenomenal athlete, shes a phenomenal fighter, and I want to get on that level.
Tate has made it no secret her goal is to eventually earn a third fight with Rousey. She wants to hand the Olympic medalist her first MMA defeat. Rousey already had an aura of invincibility prior to UFC 184, and while the shockingly quick submission of Zingano only added to it, Tate still doesnt see her longtime rival as unbeatable.
I love fighting Ronda Rousey because I think she pulls the best fighter out of me, Tate said. Thats what its really about. For me, I want to be the best fighter I can be and the best person I can be. She motivates me to do both, and I love it. I love the challenge, I love everything shes been able to do for the sport, and I love being part of that.
Although Tate has suffered two definitive losses to Rowdy, shes performed more competitively than most. Tate had some advantageous positions in both fights, and in the second contest, she lasted longer than all of Rouseys other opponents combined.
While Rousey submittedZingano so quickly, Tate said the fight ended exactly how she predicted just much quicker.
I predicted she would win with a first-round armbar, but I didnt think it was going to go quite so fast, Tate said. Cat Zingano wanted to make a statement and wanted to come out with a fast start. Everyone was criticizing the slow start and it led to her demise. She ended up getting that great throw then made some mistakes from there.
Despite Tates desire for a third fight with Rousey,fellow fighters such as Beth Correia, Jessica Eye, Cristiane Justino and Holly Holmare also queued up.
Despite wins in her past three bouts, the most recent of which was an upset of Sara McMann at UFC 183, Tate said shes perfectly content taking the slow climb back.
I definitely want all the fans to feel like Ive earned that (third fight), Tate said. I know that Im on a three-fight win streak. I know that Ive fought Ronda twice, but the first one was way back in Strikeforce. I showed improvement in the second fight, took her to the third round.
No one else has been able to do that, but at the same time, I dont want anyone to say, Oh, theyre just giving it to her. I want to prove myself, I want to earn it, and I will fight off all the other No. 1 contenders until they have no other option to let us fight.
For more on UFC 184, check out the UFC Events section of the site.
blog comments powered by DisqusSource: http://mmajunkie.com/2015/03/miesha-tate-finds-inspiration-in-dominant-performances-of-ufc-champ-ronda-rousey
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