Renan Barao News

Cole Shelton - March 27, 2020

One of the biggest questions in all of MMA is who is the GOAT? Is it someone who had the biggest impact on the sport or the person who won the most? It’s an interesting debate for fighters and fans alike to have at any time. So, with little to no MMA on for the foreseeable future, BJPENN.com reached out to several current and former bantamweights to ask who their divisional GOAT is. The majority believe it is Dominick Cruz, but had T.J. Dillashaw not been suspended for PEDs he might’ve been giving the nod.

Tom Taylor - March 23, 2020

On Sunday, Serbian Battle Championship announced that it had signed former UFC bantamweight champ Renan Barao to a multi-fight deal. It appears there’s been some kind of miscommunication.

Adam D Martin - March 22, 2020

Former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao has signed a new free-agent deal with the Serbian Battle Championship. SBC recently announced the signing of Barao to a multi-fight deal. Here’s the statement the promotion released on Instagram regarding Barao’s arrival.

Cole Shelton - December 6, 2019

Renan Barao’s time as a UFC fighter has come to an end. Barao is the former UFC bantamweight champion but has been on a skid as of late. He has dropped five straight and is just 2-8 in his last 10 leading to the UFC releasing him from his contract. Combate was first to report the news of his release.

Tom Taylor - September 21, 2018

Tomorrow night, the UFC will promote its latest show in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Although this UFC Sao Paulo card has been absolutely shellacked by injuries and fight cancellations, it’s still highlighted by some interesting matchups. One of those matchups is the main event. Originally, the card was expected to be headlined by a light heavyweight showdown between ranked contenders Jimi Manuwa and Glover Teixeira. Unfortunately, Teixeira was forced out of the fight with an injury, and replaced by beefed-up middleweight contender Thiago Santos. Regrettably, Manuwa was then also forced out of the fight, and replaced by rising middleweight contender Eryk Anders. What we’ve been left with is a surprising but compelling Eryk Anders vs. Thiago Santos light heavyweight main event.

Tom Taylor - August 1, 2018

There was a time not all that long ago that Renan Barao ruled over the bantamweight division with an iron first. Since losing his title to TJ Dillashaw, however, Barao has been on a significant downslide. Now, he’s been tasked with welcoming a debuting fighter to the Octagon — which would have been unthinkable at the height of his reign as UFC bantamweight champion. Barao will return to the cage against streaking LFA and CES MMA transplant Andre Ewell at UFC Sao Paulo on September 22. This bout was first reported by Raphael Marinho of Combate.

Chris Taylor - February 24, 2018

UFC Orlando Results: Brian Kelleher defeats Renan Barao A bantamweight scrap between former division champion Renan Barao and Brian Kelleher served as the featured bout of tonight’s UFC on FOX 28 prelims in Orlando.

Drake Riggs - February 21, 2018

It has been a rough past three years for one of MMA’s former very best pound-4-pound fighters in the octagon. When Renan Barao burst onto the scene in 2011 with his devasting win over Brad Pickett, the sky appeared to be the limit for the Brazilian. And to a point, it was. Barao would go 6-0 in the UFC and 32-1 overall including four wins in UFC title fights(three interim, two interim defense, and one undisputed defense) before finally losing his first fight in almost ten years. That loss would come to none other than the current champion, TJ Dillashaw in what was and still is to this day one of the biggest upsets in MMA’s history.

Chris Taylor - July 29, 2017

A 140-pound catchweight bout between former bantamweight champion Renan Barao and Aljamain Sterling took place during tonight’s UFC 214 prelims from Anaheim, California. Round one begins and Barao opens up with a body kick. Sterling responds with one of his own. Barao leaps in with a left hand and then a leg kick. Sterling presses forward and just misses getting caught with a spinning head kick from Renabn. Barao with a leg kick. Sterling returns fires with one to the body. Barao trips Sterling and winds up on top. Sterling immediately rolls for a leg lock. He sinks it in but Barao catches him with a good shot. Another good punch from Barao and he takes top position. The Brazilian quickly passes to half guard but Aljamain scrambles back to full guard. Barao with a left hand. He moves to half guard and lands an elbow. Renan with a some knees to the body. Sterling scrambes back with full guard. He attempts a sweep but Barao says no. Sterling looks to lock up a triangle but Barao postures up and rains down left. The horn sounds to end round one.

Tom Taylor - July 2, 2017

Originally, Aljamain Sterling expected to fight Renan Barao at bantamweight at UFC 214 this July 29. Unfortunately, the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) ultimately decided to forbid Barao from fighting at bantamweight given his previous difficulty cutting to the weight class. As such, Sterling was asked to meet Barao at a 140-pound catchweight. While Sterling is willing to meet Barao at 140, he recently divulged to MMAFighting.com that he has not yet signed the contract to do so, as he’s hoping for a bit more money.

Tom Taylor - June 28, 2017

Back in May, we learned that former bantamweight champion Renan Barao would be returning to the division he once ruled after a 2-fight run at featherweight. The former champ’s bantamweight return was pencilled in for UFC 214, on July 29 in Anaheim, California, where he will take on long-time bantamweight contender Aljamain Sterling. According to a report from FloCombat.com, however, the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) will not be allowing Barao to brave another gruelling cut to the bantamweight division’s 136 pound cap – a cut that has gone disastrously for him in the past. Instead, the commission has decided to change Barao and Sterling’s fight to a 140 pound catchweight so that Barao doesn’t put himself in danger by cutting down to 136.

Tom Taylor - May 25, 2017

Earlier this year, we learned that, despite a decent 1-1 record at featherweight, Renan Barao would be abandoning the division in favor of a return to his former bantamweight haunts. Now, the details of Barao’s bantamweight return have been revealed. The former bantamweight king will be taking on long-time prospect Aljamain Sterling at UFC 214, this July 29 in Anaheim, California. This fight was announced by the UFC on Wednesday evening.

Chris Taylor - February 12, 2017

During last night’s UFC 208 prelims, the promotion announced that four fights had been added to April’s UFC on FOX 24 event in Kansas City. The featured fight announced for the April 15 event being a pivotal women’s strawweight bout between Rose Namajunas and Michelle Waterson.

bjpenndotcom - September 24, 2016

Earlier this year, former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao made his highly anticipated featherweight debut in the UFC as he squared off against Jeremy ‘Lil Heathen’ Stephens. Barao was going up in weight with the intentions of getting a fresh start after suffering two defeats at the hands of UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw. Unfortunately for Barao, his featherweight debut didn’t go as planned. While he was able to make the featherweight limit of 145 pounds, he ultimately ended up dropping a unanimous decision to Stephens at ‘UFC Fight Night: 88’.

bjpenndotcom - May 30, 2016

https://youtu.be/ATXxFhuLO1U In the co-main event of ‘UFC Fight Night 88’, #9 ranked Jeremy Stephens stepped into the Octagon to welcome former bantamweight champion Renan Barao to the division.

bjpenndotcom - May 27, 2016

On Sunday, former UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao will be making his UFC featherweight debut against Jeremy Stephens. The fight is an extremely important one for Barao, who will be looking to make a splash in the stacked featherweight division. Ahead of the fight, ESPN’s Brett Okamoto is reporting that Barao went into fight week weighing nearly 160 pounds, 15 pounds over the featherweight limit of 145 pounds. While that certainly means he would have had a hard cut for his fight on Sunday, it likely sheds some light on why Barao had trouble making 135 pounds on several occasions in the past.