Miesha Tate set to coach TUF 18 opposite Ronda Rousey after Cat Zingano injury

Some big news rocking the MMA world tonight. According to Yahoo! Cat Zingano recently suffered a serious injury to her right knee earlier this month, of which they’ve attempted to repair a torn ACL and meniscus.

Due to the surgery, Zingano will be forced to sit out for approximately 6-9 months before she can begin training again. With that said, Miesha Tate was the obvious selection to replace the #1 contender and coach opposite Ronda Rousey, setting up a legendary rematch between the two female fighters in the process, providing us with what could be one of our first big female rivalries in history.

“The Ultimate Fighter” announced Tuesday evening that Miesha Tate will now coach opposite UFC bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey on the 18th season of TUF which is set to premiere Sept. 4 on the new FOX Sports 1 channel.

Given the fact that Rousey seemed to have been pulling for Tate to win in her previous bout with Zingano, it can only be assumed that the womens Bantamweight champion is content with the current decision in more ways than one. Speaking with Yahoo! Sports regarding the subject, this is what she had to say:

“This is what we really wanted all along. Everyone said an Ultimate Fighter between me and Miesha would be the best. We have a personal history with each other and this is a personal show. For some reason, I me and Miesha are intertwined in fate like Ali and Frazier or something like that.

“I think people will look back at this as one of monumental rivalries and look back at this as one of those things that really cemented women’s MMA.”

With all of these events and changes said and done, it will no doubt be a much more entertaining and interesting season of TUF that will more than likely draw in viewers of the casual to hardcore variety.