Former Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight
champion Renan Barao
has the date of his comeback set.
Barao (34-9, 1 NC) saw his release from the promotion in 2019 on
the heels of five losses. The Brazilian has attempted several times
to compete since then, with a Taura MMA event scuttled due to the
coronavirus pandemic. Most recently, Barao was booked against
Tyson
Duckworth at Premier FC 32 in Massachusetts on Nov. 19, but
Duckworth never boarded his plane from Alaska and withdrew from the
match due to personal reasons within his camp. “The Baron” already
has arranged for his next fight.
On Wednesday, Barao revealed to
Super Lutas the date, location and organization of his
comeback: Jan. 28 in Miami at
Eagle FC 44. Sherdog has since confirmed the signing, although
his opponent has not yet been determined.
“I had an excellent camp at Pitbull Brothers to fight at PFC in
November in Springfield, [Mass.], but unfortunately the fight was
canceled, now I’m back to Natal and I’ll keep in shape for Eagle
[FC] in January,” Barao revealed.
The 135-pound king of the UFC from 2012 to 2014, Barao is changing
things up by moving to the featherweight division in the
organization owned by Khabib
Nurmagomedov. A professional in MMA since 2005, the Brazilian
has once been considered the best pound-for-pound fighter in the
world by UFC President Dana White. In his combined Zuffa career
with World Extreme Cagefighting and the UFC, “The
Baron” won his first nine bouts before meeting T.J.
Dillashaw in 2014. At Eagle FC 44, he will try to win his first
bout since capturing a decision over Phillipe
Nover in September 2016.