After launching Prowler Pickles, UFC flyweight Miranda Maverick is venturing out into the business world once again, this time with High Stakes Honey.
Not, it’s not the latest crypto currency offering, it’s actual honey, and honey based products, from beeswax candles to branded keychains.
Why honey? UFC Vegas 94’s Maverick explained that to Cageside Press in a recent interview, ahead of her fight with Dione Barbosa this Saturday. As it turns out, Maverick has been sweet on honey since she was a kid.
“I’ve actually been raising honey bees since I was 12-years old. It was the first thing I ever spent my own money on,” said Maverick, recognizing that entering the honey business might seem like “something random.”
“We have it back on the ranch at home, and still have bee hives at home, and [are] trying to expand again. My dad loves honey, we all love honey. Since the kids have moved out, they’ve kind of gotten neglected. Of course we still feed them and everything, but only two hives are going. And now we’re trying to expand, but within that, I was like ‘you know what, we don’t have enough honey to sell because we eat so much, but I’d love to get the local beekeepers and stuff in Missouri and then out here in Colorado and expand their market.”
Maverick saw herself as a broker for local beekeepers who don’t get online and advertise much, including Mennonites. “There’s a lot of small beekeepers that don’t have the platform that I have, or the knowledge to get into farmer’s markets and stuff like that. So I thought, why not? Another business opportunity. I love honey. Anyone who doesn’t like honey I’m afraid is a psychopath or something, so hopefully you like honey.”
Honey might prove to be an easier business to be in than fighting. Coming off back-to-back wins over Priscila Cachoeira and Andrea “KGB” Lee, Maverick was expected to get a high-profile opponent in Tracy Cortez at UFC Vegas 94. However, due to an injury to Maycee Barber, Cortez was pulled from the fight, inserted into last weekend’s UFC Denver main event with Rose Namajunas.
Maverick now gets Barbosa instead. At least the date stayed firm, but it was a bumpy ride and not without its share of drama, as Maverick went on to explain.
“I was the first one to get called. I had just got done sparring with Rose like ten minutes prior when I got the phone call,” recalled Maverick, who has trained with Namajunas in Denver. “I was kind of pissed, of course, not only did my opponent get moved, but got given to basically a teammate, and they hadn’t even told me during sparring. I was like ‘wow, how rude!'”
Maverick then messaged Pat Barry to inquire about the situation- Barry, it turned out, didn’t even know, nor did Namajunas. “They had no idea, and they [the UFC] didn’t even call them for a few days to tell them about it, because they were trying to negotiate with Tracy and stuff.”
For a brief time, Maverick’s own name was thrown into the mix. “Between that negotiation, I guess Tracy didn’t want to at first, I got thrown into the hat as far as fighting Rose. Pat literally asked me if I would fight her, and I was like ‘I mean if you guys are cool with it, I’m cool with it.’ So we were up in the air with that a few days. It was pure chaos. Media was posting stuff before anything was official on our end at all. And it ended up happening pretty much the way they said.”
Which brings us to Dione Barbosa, the opponent Miranda Maverick will fight at UFC Vegas 94 at the UFC Apex.
“She has that judo background, I know she has decent grappling, she has decent striking. Her cardio has looked pretty poor in prior fights, but that can always change,” said Maverick, who isn’t going in the fight expecting Barbosa to tire after one round. “I’m ready for anything, I’m definitely expecting her best. She’s going to come out hard, just like she has before, and I’ll be ready for it. And I’ve just got to go in and basically show why I need a ranked opponent, and I plan on basically making an example with Dione.”
Which, for a fighter running High Stakes Honey, makes this a high stakes fight with the hopes of landing a big name in the offing.
Watch our full interview with UFC Vegas 94’s Miranda Maverick above.
