It didn’t take long for the UFC to put the T.J. Dillashaw–Renan Barao rematch back together.
Dillashaw was supposed to defend his bantamweight title against Barao at UFC 186 on April 25 in Montreal, but injured his ribs and had to pull out. It was announced Tuesday on FOX Sports 1’s America’s Pregame show that the fight will be rebooked for the main event of UFC on FOX 16 on July 25 in Chicago.
Dillashaw took the belt from Barao at UFC 173 in May 2014. The two men were supposed to fight again at UFC 177 last August, but Barao hit his head after collapsing during a weight cut the day before. Dillashaw ended up successfulling defending the belt against Joe Soto in the UFC 177 main event.
Barao (33-2, 1 NC) had not lost a fight in nine years prior to falling to Dillashaw. After the weight-cut mishap, the Brazilian got back on track with a third-round submission win over Mitch Gagnon last December. Barao, 28, won the interim belt against Urijah Faber in July 2012 and was given the title outright after Dominick Cruz failed to return from multiple knee injuries in February 2014.
Dillashaw (11-2) has won three straight fights in the UFC after falling to Raphael Assuncao in a close split decision in October 2013. His win over Barao the first time is one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. Dillashaw, 29, is an Ultimate Fighter 14 alum.
Also announced Tuesday for UFC on FOX 16 were fights between Anthony Pettis and Myles Jury and Miesha Tate and Jessica Eye. The former will act as the co-main event.
The card, which will take place at United Center, marks the first time a UFC title will be defended on TV since UFC on FOX 9 in December 2013 when flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson beat Joseph Benavidez.