Miesha Tate

THE FIGHTER

Miesha Tate was the foundational figure of women's bantamweight MMA — the fighter who, alongside Ronda Rousey, turned the division into something the world paid attention to. Their rivalry predated the UFC and ran through it, defining the early years of women's MMA in America with three fights, two title changes, and the kind of genuine personal animosity that made everything more compelling.

Tate's style was wrestling-based at its core, with a relentless pressure approach and excellent grappling that allowed her to outwork opponents and grind out decisions or force finishes from top position. She was not the most spectacular fighter, but she was durable, game, and capable of performing in the biggest moments when the pressure was highest.

Her finest night came at UFC 196 against Holly Holm. She was widely expected to lose to the woman who had just dismantled Rousey. Instead, Tate absorbed punishment, kept pressing, and choked Holm out in the fifth round to win the bantamweight title in a comeback that nobody saw coming. She retired once and came back; the love for competition and the sport never fully went away.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

SIGNATURE MOVES

BIGGEST WINS