Renan
Barao has been booked for his first mixed martial arts bout
since November 2019.
The former UFC bantamweight champion is slated to face William
Gomis in a featherweight matchup at Ares FC 7 on June 25 in
Paris. The promotion announced the booking via Instagram.
Advertisement
Barao was supposed to make his return on three other occasions in
recent years. A matchup with Bobby
Moffett at Taura MMA 12 in November 2020 fell through when the
entire event was canceled; a fight against Tyson
Duckworth at Premier FC 32 in November 2021 was scrapped when
Duckworth withdrew and a proposed clash against Horacio
Gutierrez at Eagle FC 44 this past January was also
canceled.
Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you
can then stream UFC Fight Night 207 “Volkov vs. Rozenstruik” live
on your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via
the ESPN app.
Once regarded as one of the top pound-for-pound talents in the
sport, Barao ended his UFC tenure on a five-fight losing streak. In
his last outing, “The Baron” fell to Douglas
Silva de Andrade via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 164.
He notably went unbeaten in 33 consecutive bouts from 2005 to 2014
before relinquishing the 135-pound belt to T.J.
Dillashaw at UFC 173.
France’s Gomis enters the bout on a seven-fight professional
winning streak and is coming off a first-round TKO victory over
Arip
Yakubov at UAE Warriors 28 “International” on March 26.