UFC champ Miesha Tate still open to catchweight fight with Cristiane 'Cyborg' Justino

Miesha Tate remains open to a fight with Invicta FC featherweight champ Cristiane Justino, ideally at a 140-pound catchweight.

So not much has changed, not even after Tate won the UFC women’s bantamweight title earlier this month at UFC 196 by choking out Holly Holm.

Tate again found herself answering the question about a hypothetical bout today in Brisbane, Australia, at a UFC Q&A in advance of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 85.

“Yeah, man,” she said at the Brisbane Event Centre, which hosts the FOX Sports 1-televised card. “I don’t know. I’ve been hearing rumors or something that supposedly she’s coming to the UFC. But I’ve been hearing it for such a long time, I just don’t really know and I haven’t had that confirmed.

“But I am open to that fight, maybe doing a catchweight at 140 (pounds). I have nothing but respect for ‘Cyborg.’”

Tate (18-5 MMA, 5-2 UFC) previously told MMAjunkie she was in Manila for a UFC Q&A in support of UFC Fight Night 66 in May 2015 when Justino’s name was first brought up in relation to hers.

At the time, then-women’s bantamweight champ Ronda Rousey (10-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) seemed less likely than ever to move from her division to challenge Justino (15-1), whose camp repeatedly pushed for a 140-pound catchweight bout to no avail.

Despite that, a Rousey-Justino showdown was rumored in the event that the champ was able to defend her belt this past November against Holly Holm (10-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC). But in a shocking upset, Holm knocked out Rousey to claim the belt, shelving Rousey.

With Rousey now reportedly recovering, and Tate now the titleholder, the UFC appears to be angling toward a third bout between the former and current champ. Tate is open to facing her rival, who’s beaten her twice.

“I did see that she can eat an apple now, so that is a step in the right direction,” Tate said, referring a recent video Rousey released in which she bit into an apple to demonstrate her jaw had recovered after Holm’s knockout.

But the new champ also wants to remain active and recently said she’d rather fight than wait for Rousey, who reportedly targeted a return in November.

In theory, that opens the door for Justino, who reportedly is in talks to make her long anticipated octagon debut in May at UFC 198 in Brazil.

As before, Tate praised Justino’s abilities and welcomed a fight. But that’s nothing new.

“She eats girls for breakfast,” Tate said. “She’s just amazing. What do I have to lose in that fight? I go out there and give it everything I have, and if I’m able to take out Goliath, then I am. I would love to step in there with someone of her caliber.”

For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.