For the first seven fights of her career, from amateur until turning pro, Ronda Rousey was a wrecking machine at 145 pounds after winning an Olympic bronze medal at 154 just a few years earlier.
Following two wins in Strikeforce, Rousey appeared ready to tackle championships at both featherweight, where Cris “Cyborg” Justino ruled, and bantamweight, where Miesha Tate was the champion at the time.
Rousey ultimately opted to move to 135 pounds, but now years later Tate says that choice was as much about avoiding a showdown with the fearsome “Cyborg” at a higher weight class as it was winning the bantamweight title.
“I just know from her whole career it was 145 and 145 only at the beginning,” Tate said recently. “It seemed like when the talks of ‘Cyborg’ became more serious it was like ‘No, I’m dropping to 135.’ “
Rousey and “Cyborg” have been dancing around a fight for years, and the sticking point remains what weight class the fight would take place in. Rousey has insisted that “Cyborg” shed an additional 10 pounds to meet her in the UFC bantamweight division, where she is the champion.
Tate argues that “Cyborg” is also a champion at 145 pounds in Invicta FC, and the right thing to do would be to meet Rousey in the middle, so both title holders would have to make a slight sacrifice for the fight to happen.
“(Ronda) is the champion but so is Cyborg. They’re both dominant champions and when you have two people that are dominant champions, one weight class apart, to me it makes sense to meet in the middle,” Tate said.
“That’s just my opinion. If Cyborg was not a champion, if she wasn’t that, then yes you need to come to the champion. But she’s a champion also so I think meeting in the middle makes sense.”
“Cyborg” is expected to fight in November for Invicta FC with her contracted weight at 140 pounds. If she’s successful in that fight, “Cyborg” is expected to finally make an attempt to fight at 135 pounds and be eligible to land a fight with Rousey.
As far as her fight at 140 pounds, there’s no word on who the Brazilian will face. Tate says she’d be up for the challenge, but only if the fight was taking place in the UFC.
“I’d love to fight Cris. It’d be an amazing opportunity to fight someone as accomplished as her and to challenge myself,” Tate said. “I hear she’s planning a fight at 140 under the Invicta FC banner.
“I’m not fighting for them. If she moves to the UFC, then I’m your girl.”
UFC president Dana White has stated several times that for “Cyborg” to earn an opportunity inside the Octagon she must first cut weight, fight and win at 135 pounds before he would bring her to the organization.
From the sound of things, “Cyborg” won’t make her first real try at bantamweight until sometime in 2016, so chances are any potential showdown with Rousey wouldn’t happen until at least spring or summer next year.
