The women’s division in the UFC has featured a handful of impressive names over the years. From Amanda Nunes to Ronda Rousey, Valentina Shevchenko to Cris Cyborg, the division has always spewed menace, venom, and strength.
Miesha Tate is another name intrinsically entwined with the legacy of women’s MMA. In a recent revelation, “Cupcake” detailed one of the most challenging things she had to undergo as a UFC fighter.
Miesha Tate Recalls the Hardest Thing She Ever Had to Do in the UFC
Tate, who holds an impressive record of 20-10-0 in her professional MMA career, was outside the octagon for 18 months before she finally got the go-ahead and eventually returned to action against Yana Santos.
Santos defeated Tate via a unanimous decision at UFC Des Moines.
Before that, Tate faced Julia Avila in Dec. 2023 at UFC Austin.
Tate recently posted a video on her official Instagram, revealing what went on behind the scenes in her absence.
She highlighted how she was desperate to recover from an injury sustained in the Avila fight, and all the effort she put in felt like a pipe dream. Sharing gruesome details about the injury, she said that she had to go through reconstructive surgery after ripping two of her ligaments in the submission win against Avila.
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“I had my hooks in on her back, one of which was a bit shallow, and I really went to be very aggressive to try to force her from back to belly, belly down, and I ripped two of my ligaments and I had to have reconstructive surgery,” Tate explained.
“It was by far the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. It was harder than coming back after having my two kids, and I, at multiple points, bawled my eyes out and thought I would never be able to fight again, which I really wanted to have that fight.”
She also said that the fact that she could return to the Octagon was nothing short of a miracle. Despite the defeat against Santos, she was happy to at least compete in the octagon because during her injury, a return looked off the charts for “Cupcake.”
After announcing her retirement from MMA in 2016, Tate pursued a career as the Vice President of ONE Championship but returned to the UFC in 2021. She has won two and lost three since.
Tate is undoubtedly one of the significant trailblazers of WMMA, especially with her fabled rivalry with Ronda Rousey.