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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Following up on Renan Barao's removal from tomorrow's UFC 177 main event, a report from Globo out of Brazil has given some more information on just what happened with the former UFC Bantamweight Champion this afternoon.
Per the report, Barao was in the midst of his weight cut in his hotel bathroom when he stood up, got light headed, and briefly passed out. He allegedly hit his head when he went unconscious, and he was transported to the hospital and administered IV fluids. He was close to the 135 lb. mark when he went out, but for clear health and safety reasons, he was pulled from the card.
Barao will now lose out on this current opportunity to regain the title from T.J. Dillashaw, who will now fight Joe Soto on a day's notice.
Penick's Analysis: Nova Uniao has had trouble with their fighters making weight in the past, and it may be a sign that Barao needs to move up featherweight, just as his teammate Jose Aldo will need to eventually move up to lightweight. Weight-cutting issues like this are a serious danger, and it can be a really unhealthy practice if fighters are cutting too much or not doing it the right way. Clearly something went wrong for Barao, and it's led to a seriously unfortunate situation here this weekend.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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