Ronda Rousey broke the news, but now it’s official.
Miesha Tate will meet Jessica Eye in a likely women’s bantamweight title eliminator at UFC on FOX 16 on July 25 in Chicago, it was announced Tuesday on FOX Sports 1’s America’s Pregame show.
Rousey, the women’s bantamweight champion, said the fight would happen last month when her UFC 190 bout with Bethe Correia was announced in Rio de Janeiro. “Rowdy” also said the winner would be her next challenger after Correia.
Tate (16-5) has fought Rousey and lost twice already. But the second time around, Tate took the undefeated champ into the third round. No other woman has even been out of the first round with Rousey. And Rousey has won her last two title defenses in a combined 30 seconds.
Since falling to Rousey by submission at UFC 168 in December 2013, Tate has won three in a row, the latest a hard-fought majority decision over Sara McMann at UFC 183 in January. Tate, 28, broke her orbital bone in the first round after a McMann punch, but came back to win the next two rounds anyway. Next to Rousey, Tate is the second most popular female fighter in the UFC.
Eye (11-2, 1 NC) had a case for a title shot, but she’ll need one more win to get there. The Cleveland native is coming off a TKO victory over Leslie Smith at UFC 180 last November when Eye exploded Smith’s ear in a bloody mess. Eye, 28, also had a split decision win over perennial contender Sarah Kaufman overturned due to a failed drug test for marijuana in October 2013. Her split decision loss to Alexis Davis at UFC 170 in February 2014 was very close.
UFC on FOX 16 will be headlined by a bantamweight title fight between champion T.J. Dillashaw and former champ Renan Barao. Also added to the card Tuesday was a co-main event bout between former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis and Myes Jury. UFC on FOX 16 takes place at United Center and is the UFC’s first trip back to Chicago since January 2014.