Don’t call it retirement.
Former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women’s bantamweight champion Miesha Tate is no longer competing in mixed martial arts (MMA); however, that doesn’t mean you’ll be seeing less of her as time goes on.
In fact, you might even see more.
“I love jiu-jitsu a lot, and I’m really excited to display it on it a different field,” Tate told the combat sports media at UFC Melbourne (transcribed by MMA Junkie). “It’s different when you’re fighting. You have to worry about people trying to get back up all the time, so it’s different. I think this is going to be a whole new avenue to express myself as an athlete, so I think it will be fun.”
Tate will co-headline the upcoming Submission Underground tournament on Dec. 11, 2016, held inside Roseland Theater in Portland, Oregon, against fellow bantamweight veteran Jessica Eye.
After that comes a potential career in broadcasting, one of many opportunities expected to be made available after UFC President Dana White promised “Cupcake” would always have a job.
“It looks like something will come to fruition with FOX at some point, so we’ll just see how that all unfolds,” Tate said. “I think there’s going to be a lot of things that I have to look forward to. I’ve got to kind of sit down and talk to my management and see exactly what’s next.”
After winning the women’s bantamweight title at UFC 196 back in March, Tate (18-7) was dethroned by Amanda Nunes at UFC 200, before eventually falling to Raquel Pennington at UFC 205 in New York.
“Cupcake” calls it quits at just 30 years old … which leaves the door open for a potential comeback another transition somewhere down the road.