Miesha Tate considered retirement after Ronda Rousey loss; plans to return next August

When Miesha Tate fell victim to Ronda Rousey’s patented armbar in the first round of their highly anticipated Strikeforce Bantamweight title showdown in March, Tate was humbled, humiliated and had her prized possession taken from her. Her injured arm was nothing compared to her fractured psyche as the loss blew out the fire that she once had. The former champ had seriously considered walking away from the sport. 

“That was at probably my lowest point of lows,” Tate said in an interview with MMA Junkie. “But I had to tell myself that really I still have a lot of love for MMA and I don’t want to walk away from it.”

Although her next fight on August 18 was a barn burner against Julie Kedzie, Tate took serious damage as she managed to will herself to a victory. But if the fighter formally known as “Takedown” had the same passion that she had as champion, she likely wouldn’t have struggled like she did against Kedzie. “I felt like I couldn’t get out of first gear,” Tate said. “I’m really fortunate that I was able to win the fight still being in that state of mind. It was really weird, and I didn’t like it.”

Something had to change. With that, Tate decided that a vacation to find the answers within herself was absolutely necessary if she even considered continuing her career in MMA. 

“I know what I need to do, and it’s just a matter of doing that and giving myself the time I need to be Miesha for a little bit,” she said. “I think I’ve put MMA at such a high priority on my list that it burnt me out a little bit. Coming off such a devastating loss with Ronda, and being so emotional for that fight that I was too emotional (for), and then I went from way too emotional to hardly any emotion. It was a big sway.”

Tate’s tentative plan has her returning to action next August in hopes of finding the fighting spirit that helped her acquire the SF title last July. As she spends time doing commentary and exploring other aspects of the sport, the 26-year-old will take her time tweaking her skills as she has a rematch with Rousey in her sights. 

“I feel like Ronda won the battle, but she hasn’t won the war,” Tate said. “I’m going to fight her again. I’m going to bring everything I have because I still want to go for my belt again.”