Miesha Tate Comments on Ronda Rousey Ahead of UFC 200 Fight vs. Amanda Nunes

UFC Women’s Bantamweight champion Miesha Tate has branded Ronda Rousey “pouty” and has questioned whether her rival will ever return to her very best. 

Tate was speaking on Conan as preparations continue for her showdown with Amanda Nunes at UFC 200. When asked about Rousey, who has not competed since losing to Holly Holm at UFC 193, Tate said she didn’t feel as though the ex-champion was handling the defeat well.

“She seems awfully pouty about the loss,” said Tate, per ESPN.com. “And it's like, we've all had losses, you know, either get up and get back on the horse and come back stronger for it, or you sit out for over a year.”

As we can see here, Tate also suggested that she’d be keen to face Rousey provided she overcomes Nunes at UFC 200:

"I've been defeated before, but I've come back stronger for it," continued Tate. "I question whether she will be able to do the same."

Holm shocked the MMA world when she beat Rousey in Melbourne, Australia. Prior to the loss Rowdy had dominated the bantamweight division, scoring spectacular wins in quick time against quality opponents; Rousey has faced Tate on two occasions and won both times.

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It’s Tate that currently has the title, though. Her bout with Holm was a fascinating one and went all the way to the fifth round. But eventually Tate was able to choke out her opponent with the clock ticking down, securing a UFC title for the first time in her career.

As such, she’s having to deal with all the extras champions need to cope with, like making appearances on prime-time shows. MMA Fighting’s Marc Raimondi thinks she’s coping with the attention well:

The focus on Rousey during her dominant days in the UFC, culminating in the biggest crowd ever for a UFC event in Melbourne when she faced Holm. Ever since the loss she’s kept a pretty low profile and UFC boss Dana White said while he’d like her to fight in 2016, the decision is still resting with her, per The Dan Patrick Show (h/t Dave Doyle of MMA Fighting).

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It’ll be interesting what state of mind Rousey will be in when she does make her awaited return.

While fans will be keen to see Rousey fighting for the title again as soon as possible, Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Snowden doesn’t think she should be thrown in at the deep end:

"

At this point you can't have Ronda Rousey come back for a title fight or mega bout. That's irresponsible. She will need a tune up.

— Jonathan Snowden (@JESnowden) June 2, 2016"

Tate may feel as though Rousey is being “pouty” about her loss, but some time away from the Octagon will be beneficial for the ex-champion; after all, this is a competitor who admitted she contemplated suicide after she lost to Holm, per ESPN.com’s Brett Okamoto.

All the great names of the sport have lost fights and come back well too, including Anderson Silva, Georges St-Pierre and Matt Hughes. They all have legacies intact despite suffering setbacks and at just 29 years old, there is plenty of time for Rousey to rebuild hers.