When TJ Dillashaw was signed to face Renan Barao in the main event of UFC 173, few gave Dillashaw any chance of unseating the reigning Bantamweight Champion. Once the dust had settled on Dillashaw’s amazing performance, the underdog was the champion, paying a cool (+550), as Barao was a massive (-925) favorite at the books.
Dillashaw deserves a lot of credit for what he did, because he extended the champion into deep waters and it was him who was better prepared for it. Just the week before, some large media outlets out there were naming Barao perhaps the unsung pound for pound best fighter, and those same media outlets are now labeling him a bum who had no answers for Dillashaw.
Barao is a very good fighter, indeed one of the best. Dillashaw came in with a game plan, and he was able to hurt Barao in the opening round. After that initial exchange that saw Dillashaw get the better of it, it was as if Barao fought off his back foot, he was tentative. And Dillashaw kept right on coming forward.
Dillashaw finished off Barao in the fifth round, the championship rounds where Barao had been before, and Dillashaw had not. Dillashaw’s performance was an eye opener.
It was such a standout performance that Barao should not be given an instant re-match. Yes, Barao was the long time top dog in the weight class, but his performance the other night is one that should leave him in line with the others for a title shot.
The fact is this shake up is the best thing that can happen to the Bantamweights. The odd man out may be long time veteran and Dillashaw teammate Urijah Faber, who was unable to defeat Barao in several attempts and may be ceding his ‘guardian’ label to Barao for now. He cant fight Dillashaw and a Barao fight with Faber is not really interesting, so let’s see what happens.
But for Dillashaw, any of the top 10 and even beyond is now an exciting fight. Michael McDonald, Raphael Assuncao, Takeya Mizugaki, even Johnny Eduardo or Eddie Wineland are all exciting fights that highlight the mix of talent, which is no longer looking so top heavy.
