T.J. Dillashaw is the new UFC Bantamweight Champion after a technical knockout of the Brazilian striker and grappler Renan Barão at UFC 173. 

A heavy underdog in the Las Vegas odds before the fight, Dillashaw surprised the former champion with extensive footwork and out-struck Barao in all five rounds. The fight was considered one of the biggest upsets in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). 

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Dillashaw and Barão's exchanged bombs with the former getting the better at it. 

Barão is known for his explosiveness and all-around game, be it fighting standing up or on the ground. Much to his credit, Barão was considered as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in MMA. 

Many said no one in the UFC's bantamweight division can match Barão's skills inside the cage. But then came Dillashaw. An Ultimate Fighter veteran and member of Team Alpha Male, whose leader, Urijah Faber, fought Barão twice and lost, Dillashaw was more than prepared for his title fight. He was hungry. 

Barão was originally set to face his fellow countryman Raphael Assuncao, but the latter was sidelined by a rib injury. Dillashaw, who said he trains like an animal and almost gets thrown out of the gym because of the hours he spends there, stepped up the plate and prepared for Barão. 

No one, even MMA sports analysts and experts, counted Dillashaw in. They had predicted that Barão would run through Dillashaw like a bullzoder just as he did to other challengers. 

For the first time in Barão's fighting career, he got punched from all directions and found an opponent whom he cannot hit solidly. 

From start to finish, Dillashaw put on a mesmerizing performance that fight fans and first-time viewers would appreciate. At one time he was in throwing strikes and immediately away from striking distance whenever Barão counters with his own strikes. 

In the fifth and final round, the two warriors were at each other as if the championship match was the last match of their careers. They were trading punches, but Dillashaw had the more accurate strikes that significantly hurt Barão. 

Dillashaw was ahead in the scorecards right from the beginning and at 2:22 of the fifth round, he caught Barão with a powerful left punch that sent the former champion to the ground. Seeing his opponent down, Dillashaw jumped on Barão and landed some more hammer punches, forcing Referee Herb Dean to stop the fight. 

TagsT.J. Dillashaw, UFC 173, Bantanweight Champion, Renan Barão