Renan Barao
Barao was winning the striking exchanges with Gangon in the first round before Mitch went into and slower grinding game plan. He even dropped him near the end of the first but couldn’t finish. In the second Gangon seemed to abandon all attempts to strike with Renan, maybe he sensed something in the clench. It is going to take more than the same rehashed game plan of wall and stall to beat the former champion. I’ve pointed out in the past that refs are starting to wise up against the stalling. A successful game plan may not have even guaranteed Mitch a victory. However, If you are going to try and grind out a decision you better have the cardio to go three rounds. Mitch got tired, and Renan took control. Once it hit the ground though, Renan made it look easy. There were some great transitions to get to that arm triangle and then the tap came quickly. Should he be granted another title shot after winning against an opponent 13 ranks below him? Not yet, we can forgive the weight cutting issue of last fight though. From the look and pace of the fight it looks like he can get a quick turn around on this and beat someone at least in the top 10 around the Dillashaw vs Cruz fight. The loser of that match would show if Rennan can improve in his head movement. It’s easy for guys like Cruz and Dillashaw to take advantage of angles on a stationary target. If he can’t beat the loser, he won’t won’t be able to beat the winner seeing how similar their two styles are. The only other legitimate option is to yet again Deny Refeal Assuncao his title shot and give him a number one contenders match with Barao. Seeing as how Cruz and Assuncao are now injured, a rematch with Dillashaw makes the most sense. Barao really lucked out here.
