Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier and Brock Lesnar dominated the build-up to UFC 200, but it’s Miesha Tate’s show now.
And she’s definitely happy about that.
Bryan Caraway, Tate’s boyfriend, revealed to the Los Angeles Times how the women’s bantamweight champion reacted Thursday night when she received the news her bout with Amanda Nunes would be UFC 200’s main event.
Caraway said Tate gave a wide smile because, he said, this moment is “something she’d strived for her whole life, especially coming from the female aspect, where they weren’t originally respected in the most masculine sport in the world.”
Added Caraway: “To rise to the top as a UFC champion and get the recognition that she can carry the biggest card in UFC history, that’s pretty amazing.”
Tate’s ascension atop UFC’s biggest-ever card happened, of course, because Jones failed a drug test, temporarily leaving Cormier without an opponent until Anderson Silva stepped in to fight. At first, Lesnar’s hyped return to the octagon against Mark Hunt was declared the main event, but once Silva was confirmed as Cormier’s opponent, UFC president Dana White also elevated Tate-Nunes as the top attraction because “it’s the right thing to do.”
It certainly was. Tate-Nunes is a championship fight, in a division popularized by Ronda Rousey and shaken up by Holly Holm’s stunning knockout last year. Tate now is the face of Saturday’s card, and it appears she’s ready to seize the day.
Thumbnail photo via Dennis Wierzbicki/USA TODAY Sports Images
