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Penick's Take
PENICK: T.J. Dillashaw Captures UFC Bantamweight Title in Unforgettable Performance at UFC 173
May 25, 2014 - 8:30:21 AM
PENICK: T.J. Dillashaw Captures UFC Bantamweight Title in Unforgettable Performance at UFC 173
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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

T.J. Dillashaw is the UFC Bantamweight Champion, and it came on the back of one of the most incredible individual performances in UFC history.

It can't be overstated just how special Dillashaw's victory was on Saturday night at UFC 173. This wasn't a fluke underdog victory, one where the reigning Champion was caught off guard by an challenger pouncing on a slight opening. No, this was Dillashaw drowning out the noise that was "Barao's the best pound for pound fighter in the world," or the sentiment that this fight was too soon for him, or that he was simply a default challenger because Raphael Assuncao got injured.

Full disclosure, those last two thoughts were how I felt about his chances coming into this fight, because while he'd shown flashes of brilliance in his UFC run thus far, the thought he could pull off what he did against a fighter who hadn't lost in nine years was insane.

No one, save for Dillashaw and Duane Ludwig, could have foreseen what we got out of the challenger on Saturday night, which was complete and utter domination.

Renan Barao entered the event with a winning streak dating back to 2007, with an unbeaten streak going back to 2005. That was 33 fights in which Barao had known almost exclusively victory, and he'd made it clear with stoppage wins over Michael McDonald, Eddie Wineland, and Dillashaw's teammate and mentor Urijah Faber that he was the best fighter in the world at 135 lbs. There was absolutely no reason to believe that anything other than another Barao victory was coming at UFC 173.

Dillashaw obviously had other plans, and he hurt Barao from the opening round on, never letting up from there.

That first round would have been incredible enough, even if Barao had come back to win, because Dillashaw proved him human with a knock down and near finish about three and a half minutes in. Barao would survive, but the longer the fight dragged on, the more his hopes of a comeback dwindled.

Dillashaw continued picking the Champion apart, winning the second, third, and fourth rounds with superior movement, and a ridiculous striking output. He found a home for a high percentage of his strikes, and continued wearing down the Champion into the fifth and final round.

Dillashaw only needed to keep himself safe for the duration of that final five minute frame, and that title would be his. But he wasn't content with that, either, as he continued pressing in the final round. He would wind up knocking the Champion down, landing several big strikes on the ground to follow up, which led to the stoppage.

The challenger forcefully wrenched that title away from the Champion on Saturday night, and it was one of those rare, truly special moments in MMA that those who watched live are going to remember. Dillashaw pulled that off through 23 minutes against a man rightfully considered among the top three fighters pound for pound on the planet. There was no reason to see Barao otherwise given his resume, and what he'd done before Saturday night. Yet Dillashaw was the better man start to finish, and put forth a performance that proved that it was him, not Renan Barao, who sits as the best 135 lb. fighter in the world.

Again, there just aren't enough superlatives to place on Dillashaw and the way he approached the fight Saturday night. He did not let the magnitude of the matchup intimidate him, and in fact became the intimidator himself. He took Barao out of his own game, fought the best fight of his career in the biggest matchup of his career.

Not only did he survive a fight in which most expected him to get beat early, he absolutely demolished a man who hadn't lost a fight since his MMA debut. No matter what he does from here, Saturday night can never be taken away from him, and he leaves Las Vegas with absolutely no question that as of May 24, 2014, he's the best 135 lb. fighter on the planet.


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