The future?
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While he was never the UFC’s most popular champion, at the time of his peak – from 2011 through to 2014 – Renan Barao was a truly fantastic fighter to watch, blending his striking and his grappling games seamlessly together as well as anyone in the UFC.
It’s unfortunate then that he may well end up being reduced to a footnote in the history of the Bantamweight division, and even worse that some fans will see him as a fighter who’s style was rendered obsolete by the more movement-oriented styles of Dillashaw, and then Cruz and Garbrandt in turn.
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In reality, I don’t feel that is the case at all. Barao is simply an example of a very hard career with a reckless style catching up to the fighter and causing him to age overnight. Had the Barao of 2010 faced the Dillashaw of 2014 I think we may well have seen a different fight. But obviously, that wasn’t the case.
Where should Barao go from here? I’m honestly not sure. It seems harsh to wish retirement on someone of a comparatively young age, but MMA is a dangerous sport and having taken what is likely a career’s worth of damage, it may be best for his health if Barao simply steps away. But obviously it isn’t that easy – we don’t know his career earnings, whether he’s got enough set aside to support his family – and that’s not to mention whether he believes deep down that he can get back to the top of the mountain.
In the end, unfortunately, I think we’ve probably seen the best version of Renan Barao at this point. Could he prove me wrong? He’s definitely got the skills, but it’s just a question of whether a body broken down over years of professional MMA can ever put them to proper use again. We shall see.
Until next time.....
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