Former UFC bantamweight champ Renan Barao won’t be fighting Aljamain Sterling after the California State Athletic Commission denied Barao of the necessary license.
Barao has famously struggled with weight cutting in the past, and actually moved up to featherweight after losing the bantamweight title.
Andy Foster, an executive officer for the CSAC, had this to say about Barao returning to bantamweight (via MMA Fighting):
“The last time Mr. Barao was over here in California, he didn’t make it to the fight. I think out of an abundance of safety, we’ve focused on weight cutting, focused on addressing severe dehydration to make weight. And the last time Mr. Barao was here he didn’t make it to the fight. I talked to my doctors and we feel like this is the appropriate and safe thing to do.”
“The commission can’t get caught up on things like if it leads to a title or it messes something up in the division,” Foster said. “That’s not our thing. We have to focus on if it’s a safe fight and if the fight is reasonable at this weight class.”
Barao lost his debut at 145 pounds, but rebounded with a victory over Phillipe Nover.
Before moving to featherweight, however, Barao had a disastrous weight cut as he attempted to make weight to rematch TJ Dillashaw at UFC 177, to the point where he passed out and cracked his head in a bathtub, which required hospitalization.
Foster instead offered that Barao vs. Sterling would most likely take place at a catchweight of 140 pounds, but nothing has been made official as of Wednesday.
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