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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
In a performance even better than his title winning effort against Renan Barao, UFC Bantamweight Champion T.J. Dillashaw out-did himself on Saturday night, defending the belt with a fourth round TKO over that very same man at UFC on Fox 16.
Barao came out fast and got into Dillashaw's face, scoring several strikes early on as things kicked off. However, the brawling was short-lived for Barao, as Dillashaw quickly established himself as the superior fighter.
Dillashaw moved in and out of range at will, landing strikes in bunches and wearing Barao down. His head movement and foot-work were phenomenal, avoiding much of the counter-striking attempts from Barao while delivering accurate strikes that started to pile up. Dillashaw looked so confident in the cage he began keeping his hands at his sides, which allowed him to deliver strikes from all angles with Barao continually getting caught unaware.
Things slowed down briefly in the third round, as the Champ worked a bit in the clinch, but the round ended strong with a big flurry from Dillashaw that brought the crowd in Chicago's United Center to their feet.
Dillashaw looked to continue that effort in the fourth round, catching Barao up against the cage with a left hook that started a furious fight-finishing sequence. Dillashaw landed big shot after big shot after big shot, with Barao somehow staying up despite being completely rocked and out on his feet. Herb Dean finally stepped in after what seemed like several strikes too many, giving Dillashaw the victory.
It was, as Joe Rogan called it afterward, a masterful performance from Dillashaw, who somehow surpassed what was a defining individual performance last May. This rematch firmly established him as the man to beat in the bantamweight division, and leaves Barao in a bad spot after two decisive losses.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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