FIGHTER PROFILE: MIESHA ‘CUPCAKE’ TATE

Miesha Tate made her return to the UFC in July of 2021 with a win over Marion Reneau. Tate who is a former UFC and Strikeforce champion has made a career out of amazing risks that definitely paid off none more riskier than making a return to the octagon after five years off. Tate was supposed to fight again on October 16th in a main event against  Ketlen Vieira, unfortunately Tate contracted Covid and is out of the five round bout. But Tate will come back stronger. She’s always been about overcoming obstacles going from living in a trailer behind her gym to being a champion. 

Tate was born on August 18, 1986 to Michelle Tate in Tacoma Washington. Tate was raised by her mother and her husband Robert Schmidt. Tate would attend Franklin Pearce High School, where she’d start her journey towards MMA Gold when she decided to join the wrestling team. Tate would join the boy’s team and would compete for four years and would win the state championship her senior year.  Tate would go on to attend Central Washington University, where she’d join the MMA club after it was pointed out by friends how much she’d enjoy the experience.

Although Tate was weary of starting to fight MMA because of  the sport’s heavy emphasis on punching over just grappling like her love of wrestling and not wanting to get punched Tate would take her first amateur fight in March of 2006, against  Elizabeth Posener. Tate would go on to lose the bout and would say of the experience “I finally realized what I was there to do, and accepted the harsh truth this wasn’t a wrestling match. It was a fight.” Tate would go on to win her next five amateur fights and would end her amateur career with a  5–1 before turning pro.

Tate would go on to start a pro career in MMA. Tate would win her first MMA title by defeating Liz Carreiro at Freestyle Cage Fighting 30 by submission. Tate would defend the title once by submitting, Valerie Coolbaugh. Tate would then move permanently to Strikeforce where she’d become Strikeforce Women’s Bantamweight Championship in 2011, when she defeated Marloes Coenen by Submission (arm-triangle choke.) Tate would go on to lose her belt to Ronda Rousey. 

Strikeforce would eventually be bought by the UFC. And with the merger of the two organizations the UFC got all of Strikeforce’s fighters. Tate would go on to lose her UFC debut against Cat Zingano. Oddly enough Tate’s next fight was for the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship against Ronda Rousey as she was a stand in for Zingano as a coach on The Ultimate Fighter the first season to feature women. Tate would lose her championship bout to Rousey, but would eventually win The UFC title against Holly Holm. Tate would unsuccessfully defend the belt against Amanda Nunes who still holds the belt to this day. Tate would step away from competing in the sport after a loss to Raquel Pennington.

In her time away from competing in the sport Tate would get a job as the Vice President of ONE fighting championship in 2018. Tate would also become a mother during this time, but Fighting was in the cards again for Tate who stepped back into the UFC Octagon in July of 2021. Tate is currently ranked eighth in the UFC Bantamweight division.