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There have been some interesting (read: retarded) viewpoints put forward about Barao on this site over the past 30 or so hours, but I've been thinking my thoughts and have decided maybe I should throw in my 2c and possibly add a balanced viewpoint on his loss to TJ, his career so far, his abilities and so on.
Firstly, I would like to say I never 'bought into the hype' for Barao. I do not in any way mean to say he is not an amazing fighter, because he is. I was just never someone who claimed he was #1 P4P or that he would have annihilated Cruz at the peak of his powers, or that his tears can cure cancer or anything like that. With that in mind I really want to answer the question:
Was Renan Barao ever 'that' good?
I've decided that he was 'that' good. But depending on your definition of 'that good'. See, I believe much of the negativity received by fighters like Anderson, Fedor, Barao, Jones and the like (ie dominant champs who have a great run but eventually are discovered to be mortal like the rest of us) is a massive overcompensation for the tiresome circle jerks deluded fans of such fighters insist on having on a daily basis. Now I believe the circle jerking can be excused to a point, because this is a discussion forum, and if anyone here doesn't want to read a topic they can pretty much fuck right off out of the thread and avoid any content that offends them. It isn't complicated. But why, after all this time, fans of fighters don't realise everyone is beatable is beyond me.
Regarding Barao, in recent weeks it seems he had gone from a once-beaten dominant champ into some sort of hideous, buck-toothed, dancing Brazilian reincarnation of Achilles himself and was considered utterly invincible. Which is ludicrous, since in the past year we've seen Jones get the piss beaten through him and win via grit and a last-ditch elbow, Silva get wrecked twice, GSP have the closest shave of the last 5 years at WW before shuffling off into retirement....it's been reinforced again and again, and very recently, that no fighter is invincible.
As a response to this it seems some fans (or anti-fans?) are gleefully dumping on Barao and loving the fact that he was so handily beaten, as if that somehow proves he was always a can. As if he were never 'that' good. I have several friends IRL that loved watching Barao get trounced and are happy to use a loss to a rampaging TJ as proof that he would never have beaten Cruz, wouldn't succeed at FW, was overrated etc etc.
Personally I think that kind of thinking really misses the mark. While never thinking he was the greatest cage warrior to have ever lived, I watched Renan virtually clean out BW, beating Faber handily twice, wrecking McDonald, stopping Pickett and Wineland...he was an extraordinary fighter, and likely remains so. So if the question was 'Is Barao the best BW going?', until last night the answer was deservedly yes. And in that sense I do believe that Barao was 'that' good.
As a fan of fights as well as fighters, I'd also point out that most of his recent fights (forget Faber 1) have been great to watch. Even his loss was an excellent fight and worth viewing. So not only did Renan demolish some seriously good opposition, but he did it in exciting fashion. I think he deserves recognition for that, because we watch the UFC because we are (allegedly) fight fans, and Renan often gave us a spectacle.
Firstly, I would like to say I never 'bought into the hype' for Barao. I do not in any way mean to say he is not an amazing fighter, because he is. I was just never someone who claimed he was #1 P4P or that he would have annihilated Cruz at the peak of his powers, or that his tears can cure cancer or anything like that. With that in mind I really want to answer the question:
Was Renan Barao ever 'that' good?
I've decided that he was 'that' good. But depending on your definition of 'that good'. See, I believe much of the negativity received by fighters like Anderson, Fedor, Barao, Jones and the like (ie dominant champs who have a great run but eventually are discovered to be mortal like the rest of us) is a massive overcompensation for the tiresome circle jerks deluded fans of such fighters insist on having on a daily basis. Now I believe the circle jerking can be excused to a point, because this is a discussion forum, and if anyone here doesn't want to read a topic they can pretty much fuck right off out of the thread and avoid any content that offends them. It isn't complicated. But why, after all this time, fans of fighters don't realise everyone is beatable is beyond me.
Regarding Barao, in recent weeks it seems he had gone from a once-beaten dominant champ into some sort of hideous, buck-toothed, dancing Brazilian reincarnation of Achilles himself and was considered utterly invincible. Which is ludicrous, since in the past year we've seen Jones get the piss beaten through him and win via grit and a last-ditch elbow, Silva get wrecked twice, GSP have the closest shave of the last 5 years at WW before shuffling off into retirement....it's been reinforced again and again, and very recently, that no fighter is invincible.
As a response to this it seems some fans (or anti-fans?) are gleefully dumping on Barao and loving the fact that he was so handily beaten, as if that somehow proves he was always a can. As if he were never 'that' good. I have several friends IRL that loved watching Barao get trounced and are happy to use a loss to a rampaging TJ as proof that he would never have beaten Cruz, wouldn't succeed at FW, was overrated etc etc.
Personally I think that kind of thinking really misses the mark. While never thinking he was the greatest cage warrior to have ever lived, I watched Renan virtually clean out BW, beating Faber handily twice, wrecking McDonald, stopping Pickett and Wineland...he was an extraordinary fighter, and likely remains so. So if the question was 'Is Barao the best BW going?', until last night the answer was deservedly yes. And in that sense I do believe that Barao was 'that' good.
As a fan of fights as well as fighters, I'd also point out that most of his recent fights (forget Faber 1) have been great to watch. Even his loss was an excellent fight and worth viewing. So not only did Renan demolish some seriously good opposition, but he did it in exciting fashion. I think he deserves recognition for that, because we watch the UFC because we are (allegedly) fight fans, and Renan often gave us a spectacle.
