Renan Barao battles fellow UFC vet Bobby Moffett in Taura MMA 12 headliner

Renan Barao’s first post-UFC fight will be against fellow octagon veteran Bobby Moffett in the main event of Taura MMA 12, which takes place Nov. 21 in Atlantic City, N.J., sources told MMA Fighting following a report from Combate.

Barao (34-9, 1 no contest) aims to snap a five-fight losing skid when he enters the cage in November. The former UFC bantamweight champion, who once beat the likes of Urijah Faber (twice), Michael McDonald and Eddie Wineland to enter the debate for the pound-for-pound top spot, hasn’t had his hand raised after a MMA bout since a 2016 decision over Phillipe Nover.

Moffett (13-5, 1 no contest) is a former RFA and LFA featherweight title contender who inked a deal with the UFC through Dana White’s Contender Series in 2018, dispatching Jacob Kilburn via second-round submission in the show, but couldn’t get things going in the UFC.

“The Wolfman” scored a controversial submission victory over Chas Skelly in his UFC debut in Nov. 2018, a win that was recently overturned to a no contest since Skelly never actually gave up to the d’arce choke, and went on to lose decisions to Bryce Mitchell and Enrique Barzola in 2019.

The Brazilian-based promotion has a series of four events booked through October and December in the United States and Brazil, and signed multiple UFC veterans over the past few weeks. According to sources, the Nov. 21 card will include Efrain Escudero, Paulo Thiago, Daniel Sarafian, Caio Magalhaes, Talita Bernardo and Juliana Lima.

Taura MMA 11, booked for Oct. 30 in Kissimmee, Fla., will be headlined by reigning 205-pound champion and The Ultimate Fighter Brazil veteran Richardson Moreira against a yet-to-be-defined opponent. The card also features Antonio Silva vs. Brett Martin, Rousimar Palhares vs. Sean Loeffler, William Macario vs. Will Chope, and Guto Inocente vs. D.J. Linderman.