As former champion Miesha Tate prepares to return to action in May, she is not only trying to beat Jana Santos, but she wants to push for the last time to win the UFC title again before her career ends.
Already recognized as one of the most skilled female fighters in history, the bantam-weight veteran didn’t compete at all in 2024 due to countless reasons such as prolonged injuries, motherhood and the expansion of the business empire. That said, Tate promises she’ll return in vengeance and hopes that her second consecutive victories on her resume will bring her much closer to the final title shot.
“The ideal year is to win this fight, win another fight and call for a title shot,” Tate told MMA Fighting. “I feel like I’m having a good time, not for a long time, so I want that sales as soon as possible, so I’m trying to make it happen this year. We’re seeing what happens, this is my year.
Now, his path to winning the UFC title is to win the past year, winning Raquel Pennington and become a two-time bantamweight champion. All indications point to Pena making her first title defense against two Olympic gold medalist Kayla Harrison later this year, but the exact date has not been determined yet.
Tate has long considered Pena a very close friend and they spent most of their career training together, which included Stint The ultimate fighter Reality show. With Tate as coaching, Pena was the top pick in the series and then her top pick before she won the entire competition.
They share so much history, so Tate admits that it’s incredibly bittersweet that Pena can return to the opportunity to become a UFC champion just to become the last remaining obstacle in her way.
The situation becomes even more difficult when you consider that Tate, who fights someone like Harrison, will solve those problems, but she will never eradicate perseverance for Pena.
“I don’t have to fight Julie because we are friends, have a long history and have so much respect and love for her. “She did a lot for me early in my career. She was there. She was a body. She was always a game. I’m so grateful that Julie contributed to my career.
“So I want her to win against Kera, but I want to fight for the title fight. I don’t want to fight Julie.
Unless she wants to fight Pena, Tate has the same idea she did as champion after abdicated Holly Holm in 2016.
Tate knew he had won the title, but he placed a huge target on her back, but never criticised anyone who came after her in the hopes of becoming a champion.
“It was like I would never look like I’d hug it from you,” Tate said of his conversation with Pena at the time. “I’ll never let you get away or be like, ‘Hey, you can’t shoot my belt.’ That’s because it’s a belt. That’s a dream. That’s not personal.
“I hope she has the same understanding that this is not personal, aside from friendship. This is just a dream and aspiration, and will he fight Julie for the title? Yes, it will.
First of all, Tate will have to pass through Santos on May 3rd, so Pena is expected to defend her title against Harrison in the near future.
When it comes to that fight, Tate understands the hype and attention that Harrison has been receiving ever since signing with the UFC, but seeing the two fights so far and facing off against Pena is a completely different kind of animal.
“I always think Julie is way better than people give her credit,” Tate said. “Because when you’re an armchair expert and you’re sitting in a side job and don’t know what force she’ll put behind her strike. You don’t know that she’ll work out with the kind of tenacity and resilience a woman has.
“But Julie is very surrounded by her impressive things. Yes, that’s not sniffing, but when you hit her, it’s different from most women in the department. It’s cute. It’s not like a pink bunny rabbit. It’s not like a mac track blowing your body.
Without a doubt, Harrison’s world-class judo skills also give her a path to victory, but Tate won’t count Pena from the fight, especially if he can drag him into a muddy waters equipped to win the former PFL champion.
“Khela has an incredible skill set. There’s no way to deny women,” Tate said. “She needs to have her exactly. She has a great skill set, but if you’re talking about full in fist fights and you’re talking about the first shy or breaking person when you’re talking about those exchanges, I know it’s not Julie. Even if she’s there, she thinks she’s there.
“So she’s ugly and tenacious and doesn’t even do any damage to slow Juliana down. I think I saw it in my battle with Amanda (Nunes), which doesn’t even slow her down.