Former UFC Bantamweight Champion Miesha Tate loves jiu-jitsu. In fact, she loves it so much that she wants to venture even further into the sport. For Tate, this means going up against one of the top professional female grapplers in the world, Mackenzie Dern.
“I would love to compete against Mackenzie,” Tate told Champions after her match at Submission Underground 2 (SUG2). “I know that she’s credentialed as one of the best, so I’d like to test myself. Jessica [Eye, her opponent at SUG2] is obviously a tough opponent. She’s a test in herself. But I really would like to venture into the grappling world more, and it is different grappling for MMA than it is grappling for jiu-jitsu, and I found that out when I went to Singapore and I really trained at Evolve with some of the best jiu-jitsu black belts in the world. I actually got to train with Mackenzie Dern’s rival Michelle [Nicolini], and we had some great rounds, and it is different grappling for MMA than it is grappling for jiu-jitsu, so I want to test myself against the best jiu-jitsu experts and [inaudible], so hopefully that will come to fruition.
Submission Underground match makers were hoping to pit Dern against Tate in the co-main event of SUG2, but Dern turned the match down. Her manager claimed she was focused on her fighting career, and planned on taking December off.
How do you think a grappling match between Miesha Tate and Mackenzie Dern would turn out? Would Tate’s wrestling background and MMA experience give her the edge, or would Dern’s high-level grappling be too much for Cupcake?
You can watch Miesha Tate’s entire interview with Champions below.
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