On the 24th of May, 2014, Renan Barao entered the Octagon as the UFC bantamweight champion of the world.
For a good half of the decade, Barao stood firmly on top of the mixed martial arts mountain. He was on a thirty-two-fight unbeaten streak and had already defended the title three times. At twenty-seven years of age, Barao was constantly in the mix for pound-for-pound greatest fighter of all time.
Facing the Brazilian was T.J Dillashaw, runner-up on the 14th installment of The Ultimate Fighter. Dillashaw wasn’t even the first choice to face Barao.