Barao gets a real bad wrap

[Redhawks100]

Blame the hype and I think some of the excuses he’s made

Really turned people against him (Rogan hype shouldn’t have to be honest)

 

[esum80]

Dude was seen as "unbeatable" at one point. Sad thing about mma is, and even i'm guilty of it, as soon as the guy loses 2 in a row, he's "done". I do think TJ broke his octagon confidence though which is a damn shame, some guys come back strong and some fade.

i don't know if i have seen a fighter lose his confidence as much as barao in recent memory (correct me if i am wrong); plus barao cutting all that weight does not help things.

 

[Huligani]

He deserves the criticism IMO.

He went from arguable #1 P4P, to 2-4 in his last 6, and those wins are over Mitch Gagnon and Phillipe Nover

He was never arguably #1 P4P, people just blindly swallow what's shoved down their throats. Barao gets the credit he deserves, no more and no less. He was the 2nd best BW when the BW division was really weak. His strengths and deficiencies were always very obvious. He belongs nowhere near any sort of all time talk.

 

[bergueg]

Loses his first fight, then bang off 32 wins in a row. 9 in WEC/UFC.


Finally loses to TJ and gets beat up badly. But I think most of us agree TJ is one of the most elite and well rounded fighters weve ever seen. TJ himself will likely go on to cement himself as a great.

Between his age, wear and tear, and brutal beatdowns by TJ he cant compete at 135 any more. But he used to be a force...

Still top 15 all time IMO, and possibly top 10.

He was still top 15 all time, until USADA showed up

 

[Dirge]

I've had bad wraps a couple of times in the past. Threw off my entire week

 

[Bboy]

Dude could be another Miguel Torres where his downslide just comes in rapidly. Honestly I was expecting him to beat Aljamain since there was no serious standup threat and Barao usually has good tdd. But he lost that fight.

 

[Gilday]

He was never arguably #1 P4P, people just blindly swallow what's shoved down their throats. Barao gets the credit he deserves, no more and no less. He was the 2nd best BW when the BW division was really weak. His strengths and deficiencies were always very obvious. He belongs nowhere near any sort of all time talk.

I'd say just before he lost to TJ it was arguable.

GSP has just retired
Anderson got KO'ed and his leg shattered
Jones had a super close fight with Gus

IIRC Aldo was #1 and Barao was #2. It wasn't crazy at the time to think Barao was the #1.

 

[riitzni]

Was expecting a hand wrap controversy, or a bad sandwich controversy.

I am disappoint TS.

 

[BLIND]

He deserves the criticism IMO.

He went from arguable #1 P4P, to 2-4 in his last 6, and those wins are over Mitch Gagnon and Phillipe Nover

Woulda been alot worse if he lost to Gagnon and phillipe lol And as TS said, 2 of the 4 losses came against TJ. Dude is still a beast, and I have hopes that he can put forth some solid performances still

 

[UFC=Pride]

I think his hand wraps were fine

 

[Char Jawz]

That's alright, it's Christmas. All the presents I gave got a bad wrap.

 

[Just Creed]

i don't know if i have seen a fighter lose his confidence as much as barao in recent memory (correct me if i am wrong); plus barao cutting all that weight does not help things.

Absolutely. It's hard to tell who's "done" and who's just lost their confidence, I think Barao is still a killer but watching him lose his cool against Jeremy Stephens at their weighin was sad. I was rooting more for Stephens but as soon as Stephens shoved him and Barao looked so shook I felt sorry for him.

 

[Typrune Goatley]

Possible that he was found out a little?

Possible....but more possible that 10 years of competing/training and 35 fights caught up to him.

That is about the time all the greats slow down

 

[Huligani]

I'd say just before he lost to TJ it was arguable.

GSP has just retired
Anderson got KO'ed and his leg shattered
Jones had a super close fight with Gus

IIRC Aldo was #1 and Barao was #2. It wasn't crazy at the time to think Barao was the #1.

Barao didn't deserve to be called #2 P4P (to hell with P4P bs anyway). He was overrated for marketing purposes.

 

[skobydog]

Like, on his hands?

No, like a Christmas present silly.

 

[JKS]

I am a big Barao fan but to be honest he's a good top 10 BW and was on top of division before the elite really came in. He never had to fight Cruz and he would likley lose that fight. He beat guys like Wineland, Faber, MacDonald, etc but these guys are not TJ, Cody, Cruz level. The fact he lost to Sterling shows that.

 

[Harlekin]

- Got a bullshit stoppage over Faber
- Lost the first round to Eddie Wineland ffs
- Looked bad against McDonald
- Got raped twice by Dillashaw
- is 1-2 since then

He was the biggest weight cutter of the division and would lose to
TJ Dillashaw
1 Cody Garbrandt

2 Dominick Cruz

3 Raphael Assuncao

4 Jimmie Rivera

5 Marlon Moraes

 

[Bend NvR Break]

Still think he beat Jeremy Stephens

 

[Bend NvR Break]

- Got a bullshit stoppage over Faber
- Lost the first round to Eddie Wineland ffs
- Looked bad against McDonald
- Got raped twice by Dillashaw
- is 1-2 since then

He was the biggest weight cutter of the division and would lose to
TJ Dillashaw
1 Cody Garbrandt

2 Dominick Cruz

3 Raphael Assuncao

4 Jimmie Rivera

5 Marlon Moraes

Why would he automatically lose to Cruz?

It's about match ups and he's a bad match up for Cruz.

People have been tryin to see that didn't for years.

I just want to see Cruz fight anyone who uses leg kicks. I was sad when he pulled out the Rivera fight.

 

[Kirin]

Dude is a real warrior, I used to love watching him fight. He doesn't get the credit he deserves. Always came to bang, never even tried to stall.

TJ put on a masterful performance against him. Both fights against Barao were incredibly satisfying to watch, despite me being a fan of Barao.

Great grappling, sloppy but usually effective striking. I think those weight cuts really cut his prime short. One of my all time favourites in the lighter weight classes though.