Miesha Tate went up against two-division champion Amanda Nunes in her penultimate fight before retiring from the sport and having felt her power it was no big surprise when she witnessed her beat up Cris ‘Cyborg’ in just 51 seconds at UFC 232.
In fact, Tate had predicted that Cyborg might struggle if she didn’t properly prepare for the kind of punching power than Nunes possesses.
“I said, if she lands that right hand – if Cyborg doesn’t respect the fact that Amanda has enough power to knock her out, she’s going to be in trouble,” Tate told MMAjunkie Radio. “I was like, ‘Cyborg needs a strategy.’ She’s never needed a strategy in a fight.”
Tate jokes that she lasted longer than both Ronda Rousey and Cris ‘Cyborg’ combined against Nunes, but that’s not exactly saying too much given that she was still tapped out in just three minutes and 16 seconds.
However, it’s the way she hits that the former champion remembers about her fight with ‘The Lioness.’
“Her simple jab feels like a right hand, and then her right hand feels like you got hit by a truck. I didn’t even know where I was half of that fight.”
Holly Holm is currently trying to work her way into a title fight with Nunes either at bantamweight or featherweight, but either way Tate (who famously beat Holm with a last-gasp submission to win the 135lb belt back in 2016) says ‘The Preacher’s Daughter’ just isn’t on the same level when it comes to concussive striking, despite her boxing background.
“It’s not even in the same league,” Tate said. “Amanda hits way harder.”
And with that in mind, Tate believes that Nunes could also make a big impact in the boxing ring too.
“I think she’d be knocking girls out, for sure,” Tate stated.
