UFC 177: T.J. Dillashaw Knocks Out Late Replacement Joe Soto

Joe Soto slept two nights before thinking he was an undercard yet again two days before UFC 177. He woke up to the news that he would have the chance to snatch the bantamweight title.

Veteran mixed martial arts fighter Soto was picked by the UFC to be a late replacement for Renen Barao after the challenger collapsed in an effort to make weight. It was a dream that came true for Soto as he was tapped to face T.J. Dillashaw in the day's main event at Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento, California.

While the dream did not actually fulfill the fantasy, Soto fared better than Barao did in his first fight in May lasting the five rounds before going down in the final round and losing on a technical knockout from the champion. He went down on a head kick in the 2:20 mark of the fifth round and the referee stopped the match.

"It was a dream come true," Soto said of landing the fight per Yahoo Sports. "It was an honor I got the UFC to ask me to fight for the title. I love the UFC and I always wanted to be here since I was a kid. I always wanted to be interviewed by [UFC analyst Joe Rogan]. I didn't want to live the rest of my life, and die, without fighting in the UFC."

Both Soto and Dillashaw got the surprise of their lives. The champion had his game plan to a tee in facing the man he stopped in the same amount of rounds in May. Now just 26 hours before the fight, he was notified that Barao had to be rushed to the hospital after collapsing and bumping his head in his bathtub. It was amazing how he quickly adjusted to his new opponent.

Dillashaw revised his plan with his coaches Friday and showed no signs of unpreparedness during the bout. His hand speed and numerous attacks were just too much to handle for Soto. He was not landing power punches but the number at which those came eventually did his opponent in. Dillashaw was the usually the instigator of action and rarely did he give Soto the chance to counter. While his punches did not do the final damage, his kick did, ending the match with a kick to Soto's head which prompted referee Big John McCarthy to stop in and halt the match.

"Man, it's been crazy," Dillashaw said. "An hour before making weight, I get a call and I hear he's not making weight and there was a switch of opponents. It's [hard] especially when it's a tough opponent like Joe Soto."

The exit of Barao due to weigh in problems made him look even worse with the comments he hurled pre-fight. It also affected the purse of Dillashaw as Barao was more of the draw that fans expected, being the high profile opponent. Barao relayed that he trained hard the way he did his past 35 fights and was planning to make Dillashaw eat the words he said about him being afraid to fight the champion. Unfortunately, a collapse did him in and cost him the opportunity to "tear T.J.'s head off."

With the win, Dillashaw became the first fighter to record two fifth round knockouts.