Miesha Tate

Yeah, that's Miesha Tate showing off some of her assets (hi-yo!) in the new issue of Fight! Magazine.  She might not flaunt it as much as some others, but Tate is another female fighter who is both way too tough and way too good-looking for us.  Does that make us sad?  A little, yeah.  But this picture helps ease the pain.  If only we'd known how fine she was when we talked to her a couple of weeks ago, we could have really worked the old magic.  And by magic we mean been really weird and creepy.  Missed opportunity, there.

More Tate hotness is after the jump, and way more in this month's issue of Fight!, which coincidentally also features an article by yours truly on everyone's favorite mustache ride-offering hard-ass, Don Frye.  Check it out.

(Tate vs. Elaina Maxwell on her previous Strikeforce appearance.)

A few weeks ago Miesha Tate thought she’d be facing Kim Couture at the Strikeforce Challengers event on Showtime this Friday night.  But when Couture pulled out due to “personal reasons” and Tate posted a MySpace bulletin informing fans that “Sugar Free’s” impending divorce from former UFC champ Randy Couture was to blame, things got sticky in a hurry.  

Now instead of facing the 1-1 Couture, she’s facing the 8-0 (all by KO or TKO) Sarah Kaufman, and the fight has grown considerably in magnitude.  Here she talks about the change of opponents, her path to MMA, and what it’s like trying to make it as a female MMA fighter.

This seems like significant change in opponents, and on fairly late notice.  How did that affect your preparation for this fight and what the fight means for you?

It was kind of strange at first, the idea of going from Kim Couture to Sarah Kaufman.  Obviously it’s quite a jump.  I think I have a lot more to gain from this fight.  She’s a very tough and worthy opponent.  I have the opportunity to beat someone who has an established, undefeated record.

Do you think the only reason Kim Couture got this fight in the first place was because of her last name?

(Guess who isn't in this sport to just screw around?)

Strikeforce may have found their replacement for Kim “Future Ex Mrs.” Couture, and it’s an undefeated fighter who made her willingness to scrap known on the UG.  8-0 Sarah Kaufman said in a forum post that she’d step in to face Miesha Tate while Couture sorted out her personal issues, and Strikeforce may be taking her up on the offer.  They acquired her contract in the Pro Elite sale, and though the fight’s right around the corner on May 15 Kaufman has a real opportunity to turn the Couture family’s rumored marital strife into a big payoff for herself so why not?  Unlike Kim Couture, she may not have a recognizable name, but she does have more than two fights, so automatically this becomes more of a serious fight with her in it.  Those of you wondering what she can do should take a look after the jump.

(Well, at least now they'll have to make a new poster where Miesha's name is spelled correctly. Image courtesy of FighterGirls.com.)

Friends and fans of Miesha Tate were in for a shock yesterday when this bulletin notice was sent out from Tate's Myspace page:

Though Tate's camp confirmed to PRO MMA that her May 15th Strikeforce Challengers bout against Couture had been scrapped, Miesha later took to Sherdog to back off her claim that Randy was headed for his third epic marriage fail:

(Frank Shamrock and Mauro Ranallo trade places. Ranallo is chubby. Frank has braces. Hilarity *almost* ensues.)

— After jiu-jitsu badass Andre Galvao (3-0) finishes his current run in DREAM's welterweight GP, he'll be heading over to Strikeforce to shake shit up in their 170-pound division. The seven-time Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion is currently training at the new Black House facility in Los Angeles, and will be working out with Anderson Silva, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza for his next DREAM tournament bout on July 20th. Jake Shields, you've been put on notice.

— In an effort to make tomorrow night's lightweight scrap between Gilbert Melendez and Rodrigo Damm a little more interesting, the winner will be named Strikeforce's interim world lightweight champion. (Are you psyched yet?) The interim champ will face the actual lightweight champion, Josh Thomson, as soon as the Punk's leg is healed.

— Kim "Sugar Free" Couture will compete next on the main card of Strikeforce's first "Challenger Series" event, which will take place May 15th in Fresno, California, and will be broadcast on Showtime. Couture will take on the very-tough Miesha Tate (5-1) in the up-and-comers event, which will be headlined by a fight between undefeated lightweight Billy Evangelista and BJ Penn student Mike Aina.

— We'll leave you with this quote from Frank Shamrock's Yardbarker blog: "its time to get serious. i am taking off to the hotel and getting ready to cut some weight. i was 185.2 when i got up so its nothing of a cut. looking forwrd to that BARBQ after. nick is gonna die. i love this sport."