Miesha Tate won’t give up UFC belt without a fight
Las Vegan Miesha Tate doesn’t have any children, but she has already learned her motherly instincts are quite strong.
The UFC women’s bantamweight champion is just as motivated to keep the title as she was to achieve that goal.
“There’s just something more to it,” she said of wearing the UFC belt. “I can’t quite put my finger on it, but it’s a sense of pride and success and also possessiveness. It kind of brings you back to your primal roots like a lioness or a mother bear with her cubs. That’s kind of how I feel about the belt.
“It’s mine and I’m not going to let anyone hurt it or take it.”
Amanda Nunes will get the first shot on the historic UFC 200 card at T-Mobile Arena on July 9.
Tate’s coach and boyfriend, bantamweight contender Bryan Caraway, said the confidence she gained from winning the belt combined with her work ethic will make the job of all challengers very difficult.
“She seems to have a golden aura around her,” Caraway said. “She’s always really positive and really happy and she’s always worked really hard, but getting the recognition that she deserves has motivated her even more.
“She’s at another level. Some people might think, ‘OK, I’ve got the title that I worked so hard for. I don’t have anything left to prove.’ But that’s not the way Miesha works. She’s a champion for a reason, and now that she is, she’s got even more drive to keep that belt and all the perks that come along with it. She has this intrinsic drive inside her that motivates her.”
Tate, 29, was beaming Monday after a training session at Xtreme Couture on Sunset Road.
She has enjoyed the fruits of being champion since winning the title with a fifth-round submission of Holly Holm in March, but didn’t take much time off before starting a new camp to prepare for her first title defense.
There was no hangover effect.
“This has been a fun camp, honestly,” she said. “Every camp has hardships and it’s always hard work, but I feel this has been one of my best camps, and it’s about the happiest I’ve been in a camp. So maybe there’s something to (having this belt).”
Tate knows there is no opportunity for a breather now that she’s at the top of the ladder she has been climbing since the UFC added a women’s division in 2013.
“It doesn’t get easier,” she said. “It only gets harder from here on out because I’m always going to be fighting the next-best girl.
“Holding on to that belt is all the drive I need.”
JIMMO DEAD AT 34
UFC veteran Ryan Jimmo was killed in a hit-and-run incident in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada early Sunday.
According to CBC News, Jimmo was involved in some sort of altercation with the party in another vehicle and he approached the truck on foot. As he turned around to return to his car, the driver of the truck accelerated and ran him over before fleeing the scene.
Jimmo died later in the hospital from his injuries.
Jimmo, who briefly appeared on Season 8 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” compiled a 3-4 record in seven UFC fights since debuting in 2013. He was released after a unanimous decision loss to Francimar Barroso in May 2015.
Before signing with the UFC, Jimmo had a successful run as the Maximum Fighting Championship light heavyweight champion. Overall, he was 19-5 as a professional.
‘PUNK’ FINALLY READY
Phil Brooks, the former professional wrestler known as “CM Punk” is expected to fight Mickey Gall at UFC 203 in Cleveland on Sept. 10.
Brooks announced the date during an appearance on the UFC-produced podcast Unfiltered.
The bout has been in the works for some time.
Brooks announced he would leave the WWE to sign with the UFC in 2014, but acknowledged he would need time to train in the sport before actually stepping into the cage.
When he said he was ready, UFC officials thought they had found a suitable opponent in Gall, who was signed after his successful pro debut aired as a part of UFC president Dana White’s reality show, “Lookin’ For a Fight.”
Gall was promised the fight against Brooks should he beat Mike Jackson at UFC Fight Night 82 in February, and Gall came through with a first-round submission victory.
Brooks, 37, appeared in the cage afterward to promote the potential bout against Gall, but Brooks announced days later he would be forced to withdraw due to an injury.
Now, he says he is ready to go.
For his part, Gall elected to wait for Brooks to get healthy instead of risking the high-profile bout by taking a fight in the interim.
A heavyweight bout between Alistair Overeem and hometown champion Stipe Miocic will headline the card.
Ben Rothwell and former heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum will also square off, as will women’s bantamweights Jessica Eye and Bethe Correia.
Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj
