For Miesha Tate, UFC win, Ronda Rousey rematch just the beginning

LAS VEGAS – While Miesha Tate didn’t earn the honor of fighting in the first women’s bout in UFC history, she does have much to gain in her upcoming fight with Cat Zingano. None of it matters as much as what she really wants.

“Becoming a champion means more to me than anything – more than a rematch, more than anything,” Tate told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “That’s something that when I’m 80 years old someday and I have kids and grandkids I can look back and say, ‘Look, this is what I did. This is my accomplishment.’ So that’s my ultimate goal.”

Tate begins that effort on Saturday, when she meets Zingano at The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale, which takes place at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay Events Center and airs on FX. The winner of the fight will serve opposite UFC women’s bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey as coach on “The Ultimate Fighter 18? and will then face “Rowdy” for the title later this year.

Rousey, who beat Tate in a much-hyped Strikeforce title fight in March 2012, has actually said she’s cheering for Tate in the bout, as she’d prefer to coach against her on the show.

“It made me like her a little bit more,” Tate joked. “She knows that we have a good rivalry, and I think it will make for good publicity, good TV. I think everybody would love to see that, and I think it’s perfect.

“Her and I coach against each other, our teams against each other, and them a rematch. It just sounds like the dream.”

But Tate can’t make the mistake of overlooking the undefeated Zingano. Tate certainly boasts more big-fight experience, but Zingano has proven a scrappy, exciting fighter in her seven professional contests. Still, Tate believes Zingano’s self-admitted tendency to stray from her gameplan could prove costly.

“I think she’s a very strong, athletic girl,” Tate said. “But I don’t think she’s the most technically sound fighter there is.

“She’s a pretty forward-style fighter. She gets a little overzealous in some positions, and I think my experience is going to capitalize in the fight when she makes those mistakes.”

As a former Strikeforce champ, Tate knows what it’s like to bask in the spotlight of a big fight, and she’s delivered time and time again in pressure situations. On Saturday, she’ll have a world of opportunities awaiting a victory: a chance to coach on the first edition of “The Ultimate Fighter” to feature women, a rematch with her nemesis, a shot at UFC gold.

Tate relishes the opportunity to claim it all, but she knows none of it is guaranteed just yet.

“I’m here in the UFC,” Tate said. “It’s really exciting to be a part of it, but I don’t really consider myself in the UFC until I get my first win. Saturday is a big day to me.”

For more on The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.