Former bantamweight champion Miesha Tate has now committed to moving down to the UFC’s flyweight division and will fight Lauren Murphy for her debut in the weight class at an upcoming event on May 14th.
Tate had returned to the sport last year after an almost five-year absence and got off to a good start with a TKO victory over Marion Reneau in July.
However, the 35-year-old then went on to lose convincingly by unanimous decision to Ketlen Vieira in November and as the year drew to a close she began hinting that a potential drop down in weight to 125lbs could be on the cards, though at that stage she was still mulling over her options.
It seems she has now fully committed to the idea though and will be immediately tasked with going up against the flyweight division’s No.3 contender Lauren Murphy, who is coming off an unsuccessful attempt to dethrone Valentina Shevchenko last September, losing by TKO in the fourth round.
Before that the 38-year-old Murphy had been on a five-fight winning streak, defeating the likes of Joanne Wood, Roxanne Modafferi and Andrea Lee along the way.
Tate vs. Murphy is so far the only fight attached to the as-yet unannounced card that will take place on May 14th.
