Miesha Tate rumored to return in June against a ranked bantamweight
Former UFC women's bantamweight champion Miesha Tate is seemingly set to make her comeback. 'Cupcake' lost her flyweight divisional debut in her last octagon appearance. The consensus is that the 36-year-old Tate will likely return to the bantamweight division next.
As noted by MMA Mania via its "@mmamania" Twitter handle, the "@damadeferromma" Twitter account has reported that a matchup between Tate and Mayra Bueno Silva is being targeted for June 3, 2023. MMA Mania's tweet read as follows:
"Miesha Tate vs. Mayra Bueno Silva is being targeted for June 3rd! First reported by @damadeferromma"
Miesha Tate vs. Mayra Bueno Silva is being targeted for June 3rd!
First reported by @damadeferromma https://t.co/hvzxxFLbJj
Tate currently stands at No.10 whereas Mayra Bueno Silva holds the No.12 position in the official UFC women's bantamweight rankings. Silva is a 31-year-old fighter who's competed in both the flyweight (125-pound) and bantamweight (135-pound) divisions over the course of her MMA career.
Since returning to bantamweight in 2022, 'Sheetara' has put together a three-fight win streak. Silva's most recent fight was contested at bantamweight earlier this month and saw her defeat Lina Lansberg via second-round submission.
Following her victory over Lansberg, Brazil's Silva indicated that she aims to fight for the UFC women's bantamweight title soon. On that note, Silva called for possible fights against former UFC women's bantamweight champion Julianna Pena and former bantamweight title challenger Raquel Pennington.
Silva also highlighted that she'd like to face Miesha Tate if the latter returns. 'Sheetara' appeared to be open to possibly fighting Tate. 'Cupcake' later took to her Instagram Stories to praise Silva's performance against Lansberg. Tate also insinuated that she'd like to fight Silva in May.
Miesha Tate's potential return to the UFC bantamweight division and quest to reclaim UFC gold
After retiring from MMA in November 2016, Miesha Tate returned to the sport in 2021 with an impressive third-round TKO victory over Marion Reneau in a bantamweight bout in July 2021. 'Cupcake' then faced fellow bantamweight Ketlen Vieira in her next fight in November 2021 and lost via unanimous decision.
Following that, Tate dropped down a weight class, making her flyweight debut against former UFC women's flyweight title challenger Lauren Murphy in July 2022. Tate lost to Murphy via unanimous decision.
Later the same month, Tate's close friend Julianna Pena lost the UFC women's bantamweight title in her rematch against Amanda Nunes. 'Cupcake,' who'd always been adamant about not wanting to face her friend Pena, subsequently hinted that she'd potentially return to bantamweight and attempt to reclaim the bantamweight belt now that Pena isn't the champion anymore. Tate tweeted:
"Finally starting to fill back in after the drop to 125. What do you guys think I should do next, stay at 125 or go back up to 135?"
Finally starting to fill back in after the drop to 125. What do you guys think I should do next, stay at 125 or go back up to 135? https://t.co/aY6lev9M7A